Seaweed cultivation in India-Present and future

Seaweeds are used as human foods,lock feed and utiliser in different parts of the world. Apart from these traditional uses, the seaweed extractives of red and brown algae such as agar-agar, algin and Carrageenan, are employed in various industries, especially, food, confectionary, pharmaceuticals and textile industries. Recent studies on seaweeds gave promising results on their role in waste treatment and as potential sources of drugs and bio-energy. These new applications will further increase the demand for seaweeds in the near future.