Jakarta - Indonesia is expected to become the world`s biggest seaweed producer and leading nation in the seaweed industry in 2010, a spokesman said.
General Chairman of the Indonesian Seaweed Society Association, Jana T. Anggadiredja said here on Friday that Indonesia had indeed become the world`s biggest seaweed raw material producer for the euchuma sp type.
He said that for that purpose Indonesia would organize an international seaweed forum which would be held in Makassar, South Sulawesi, on October 27-30, 2008.
Indonesia`s seaweed production in 2007 reached 94,000 tons which consisted of the euchuma dentuculatun type and glacilaria. The first one is used as cosmetics and pharmacy raw material and the second one as gelatin.
Anggadiredja said that the biggest seaweed supplier in the country was South Sulawesi province followed by Bali, Sumbawa and Madura.
In order to support the country`s step to become the world`s biggest seaweed producer, various seaweed associations were formulating an operation standard for the processing of seaweed, beginning from seed selection until post-harvest handling, Anggadiredja said.
He said that the forum in Makassar itself would be held as a forum of promoting the country as the biggest seaweed producer nation.
Seaweed researchers from at least 20 countries will appear as speakers in the forum, which will also present training for seaweed farmers from the Indonesian seaweed farmers congress.
Source: http://www.antaranews.com (October 10, 2008)