The green seaweed Ulva: tomorrow’s “wheat of the sea” in foods, feeds, nutrition, and biomaterials

Laurie C. Hofmann; Sylvia Strauss; Muki Shpigel; Lior Guttman; Dagmar B. Stengel; Céline Rebours; Natasha Gjorgovska; Gamze Turan; Karina Balina; Gabrielle Zammit; Jessica M.M. Adams; Umair Ahsan; Angela G. Bartolo; John J. Bolton; Rosário Domingues; Ömerhan Dürrani; Orhan Tufan Eroldogan; Andreia Freitas; Alexander Golberg; Kira I. Kremer; Francisca Marques; Massimo Milia; Sophie Steinhagen; Ekin Sucu; Liliana Vargas-Murga; Shiri Zemah-Shamir; Ziv Zemah-Shamir; Antonio J. Meléndez-Martínez

doi:10.1080/10408398.2024.2370489

The green seaweed Ulva: tomorrow’s “wheat of the sea” in foods, feeds, nutrition, and biomaterials

Laurie C. Hofmann, Sylvia Strauss, Muki Shpigel, Lior Guttman, Dagmar B. Stengel, Céline Rebours, Natasha Gjorgovska, Gamze Turan, Karina Balina, Gabrielle Zammit, Jessica M.M. Adams, Umair Ahsan, Angela G. Bartolo, John J. Bolton, Rosário Domingues, Ömerhan Dürrani, Orhan Tufan Eroldogan, Andreia Freitas, Alexander Golberg, Kira I. KremerFrancisca Marques, Massimo Milia, Sophie Steinhagen, Ekin Sucu, Liliana Vargas-Murga, Shiri Zemah-Shamir, Ziv Zemah-Shamir, Antonio J. Meléndez-Martínez

Research output: Contribution to journal › Review article › peer-review

Abstract

Ulva, a genus of green macroalgae commonly known as sea lettuce, has long been recognized for its nutritional benefits for food and feed. As the demand for sustainable food and feed sources continues to grow, so does the interest in alternative, plant-based protein sources. With its abundance along coastal waters and high protein content, Ulva spp. have emerged as promising candidates. While the use of Ulva in food and feed has its challenges, the utilization of Ulva in other industries, including in biomaterials, biostimulants, and biorefineries, has been growing. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the current status, challenges and opportunities associated with using Ulva in food, feed, and beyond. Drawing on the expertise of leading researchers and industry professionals, it explores the latest knowledge on Ulva’s nutritional value, processing methods, and potential benefits for human nutrition, aquaculture feeds, terrestrial feeds, biomaterials, biostimulants and biorefineries. In addition, it examines the economic feasibility of incorporating Ulva into aquafeed. Through its comprehensive and insightful analysis, including a critical review of the challenges and future research needs, this review will be a valuable resource for anyone interested in sustainable aquaculture and Ulva’s role in food, feed, biomaterials, biostimulants and beyond.

Original language	English
Number of pages	36
Journal	Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition
Early online date	9 Jul 2024
DOIs	https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2024.2370489
State	E-pub ahead of print - 9 Jul 2024

Bibliographical note

Publisher Copyright:
© 2024 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.

Keywords

Ulva
aquafeed
biomaterials
biorefinery
feed
food
nutrition
seaweed

ASJC Scopus subject areas

Food Science
Industrial and Manufacturing Engineering

Access to Document

10.1080/10408398.2024.2370489

Cite this

Hofmann, L. C., Strauss, S., Shpigel, M., Guttman, L., Stengel, D. B., Rebours, C., Gjorgovska, N., Turan, G., Balina, K., Zammit, G., Adams, J. M. M., Ahsan, U., Bartolo, A. G., Bolton, J. J., Domingues, R., Dürrani, Ö., Eroldogan, O. T., Freitas, A., Golberg, A., ... Meléndez-Martínez, A. J. (2024). The green seaweed Ulva: tomorrow’s “wheat of the sea” in foods, feeds, nutrition, and biomaterials. Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition. Advance online publication. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2024.2370489

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abstract = "Ulva, a genus of green macroalgae commonly known as sea lettuce, has long been recognized for its nutritional benefits for food and feed. As the demand for sustainable food and feed sources continues to grow, so does the interest in alternative, plant-based protein sources. With its abundance along coastal waters and high protein content, Ulva spp. have emerged as promising candidates. While the use of Ulva in food and feed has its challenges, the utilization of Ulva in other industries, including in biomaterials, biostimulants, and biorefineries, has been growing. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the current status, challenges and opportunities associated with using Ulva in food, feed, and beyond. Drawing on the expertise of leading researchers and industry professionals, it explores the latest knowledge on Ulva{\textquoteright}s nutritional value, processing methods, and potential benefits for human nutrition, aquaculture feeds, terrestrial feeds, biomaterials, biostimulants and biorefineries. In addition, it examines the economic feasibility of incorporating Ulva into aquafeed. Through its comprehensive and insightful analysis, including a critical review of the challenges and future research needs, this review will be a valuable resource for anyone interested in sustainable aquaculture and Ulva{\textquoteright}s role in food, feed, biomaterials, biostimulants and beyond.",

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author = "Hofmann, {Laurie C.} and Sylvia Strauss and Muki Shpigel and Lior Guttman and Stengel, {Dagmar B.} and C{\'e}line Rebours and Natasha Gjorgovska and Gamze Turan and Karina Balina and Gabrielle Zammit and Adams, {Jessica M.M.} and Umair Ahsan and Bartolo, {Angela G.} and Bolton, {John J.} and Ros{\'a}rio Domingues and {\"O}merhan D{\"u}rrani and Eroldogan, {Orhan Tufan} and Andreia Freitas and Alexander Golberg and Kremer, {Kira I.} and Francisca Marques and Massimo Milia and Sophie Steinhagen and Ekin Sucu and Liliana Vargas-Murga and Shiri Zemah-Shamir and Ziv Zemah-Shamir and Mel{\'e}ndez-Mart{\'i}nez, {Antonio J.}",

note = "Publisher Copyright: {\textcopyright} 2024 The Author(s). Published with license by Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.",

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doi = "10.1080/10408398.2024.2370489",

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Hofmann, LC, Strauss, S, Shpigel, M, Guttman, L, Stengel, DB, Rebours, C, Gjorgovska, N, Turan, G, Balina, K, Zammit, G, Adams, JMM, Ahsan, U, Bartolo, AG, Bolton, JJ, Domingues, R, Dürrani, Ö, Eroldogan, OT, Freitas, A, Golberg, A, Kremer, KI, Marques, F, Milia, M, Steinhagen, S, Sucu, E, Vargas-Murga, L, Zemah-Shamir, S, Zemah-Shamir, Z & Meléndez-Martínez, AJ 2024, 'The green seaweed Ulva: tomorrow’s “wheat of the sea” in foods, feeds, nutrition, and biomaterials', Critical Reviews in Food Science and Nutrition. https://doi.org/10.1080/10408398.2024.2370489

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T2 - tomorrow’s “wheat of the sea” in foods, feeds, nutrition, and biomaterials

AU - Hofmann, Laurie C.

AU - Strauss, Sylvia

AU - Shpigel, Muki

AU - Guttman, Lior

AU - Stengel, Dagmar B.

AU - Rebours, Céline

AU - Gjorgovska, Natasha

AU - Turan, Gamze

AU - Balina, Karina

AU - Zammit, Gabrielle

AU - Adams, Jessica M.M.

AU - Ahsan, Umair

AU - Bartolo, Angela G.

AU - Bolton, John J.

AU - Domingues, Rosário

AU - Dürrani, Ömerhan

AU - Eroldogan, Orhan Tufan

AU - Freitas, Andreia

AU - Golberg, Alexander

AU - Kremer, Kira I.

AU - Marques, Francisca

AU - Milia, Massimo

AU - Steinhagen, Sophie

AU - Sucu, Ekin

AU - Vargas-Murga, Liliana

AU - Zemah-Shamir, Shiri

AU - Zemah-Shamir, Ziv

AU - Meléndez-Martínez, Antonio J.

PY - 2024/7/9

Y1 - 2024/7/9

N2 - Ulva, a genus of green macroalgae commonly known as sea lettuce, has long been recognized for its nutritional benefits for food and feed. As the demand for sustainable food and feed sources continues to grow, so does the interest in alternative, plant-based protein sources. With its abundance along coastal waters and high protein content, Ulva spp. have emerged as promising candidates. While the use of Ulva in food and feed has its challenges, the utilization of Ulva in other industries, including in biomaterials, biostimulants, and biorefineries, has been growing. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the current status, challenges and opportunities associated with using Ulva in food, feed, and beyond. Drawing on the expertise of leading researchers and industry professionals, it explores the latest knowledge on Ulva’s nutritional value, processing methods, and potential benefits for human nutrition, aquaculture feeds, terrestrial feeds, biomaterials, biostimulants and biorefineries. In addition, it examines the economic feasibility of incorporating Ulva into aquafeed. Through its comprehensive and insightful analysis, including a critical review of the challenges and future research needs, this review will be a valuable resource for anyone interested in sustainable aquaculture and Ulva’s role in food, feed, biomaterials, biostimulants and beyond.

AB - Ulva, a genus of green macroalgae commonly known as sea lettuce, has long been recognized for its nutritional benefits for food and feed. As the demand for sustainable food and feed sources continues to grow, so does the interest in alternative, plant-based protein sources. With its abundance along coastal waters and high protein content, Ulva spp. have emerged as promising candidates. While the use of Ulva in food and feed has its challenges, the utilization of Ulva in other industries, including in biomaterials, biostimulants, and biorefineries, has been growing. This review aims to provide a comprehensive overview of the current status, challenges and opportunities associated with using Ulva in food, feed, and beyond. Drawing on the expertise of leading researchers and industry professionals, it explores the latest knowledge on Ulva’s nutritional value, processing methods, and potential benefits for human nutrition, aquaculture feeds, terrestrial feeds, biomaterials, biostimulants and biorefineries. In addition, it examines the economic feasibility of incorporating Ulva into aquafeed. Through its comprehensive and insightful analysis, including a critical review of the challenges and future research needs, this review will be a valuable resource for anyone interested in sustainable aquaculture and Ulva’s role in food, feed, biomaterials, biostimulants and beyond.

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KW - biomaterials

KW - biorefinery

KW - feed

KW - food

KW - nutrition

KW - seaweed

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The green seaweed Ulva: tomorrow’s “wheat of the sea” in foods, feeds, nutrition, and biomaterials

Abstract

Bibliographical note

Keywords

ASJC Scopus subject areas

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