The Fraunhofer Institute for Process Engineering and Packaging IVV and the Fraunhofer Project Center for Innovations in Food and Bioresources at ITAL coordinate a project that will study applications for marine macroalgae, which will be carried out in partnership with the Botanical Institute of USP. The SeaFeed project was approved by the German International Bioeconomics program and it will last three years

Due to its extensive coastline and weather diversity, Brazil presents an enormous biodiversity of marine algae, whether native or exotic. The presence of algae biomass has been noticed in several states. Macroalgae, also called marine plants, have fundamental functions in the marine environment, creating areas of refuge and reproduction to other beings, improving water quality and even serving as food. On a commercial scale they are usually cultivated because they have a large and rapid production of biomass and they also contain substances such as carrageenan and agar, much used in the food sector. Carrageenan, for instance, acts as a thickener, gelling agent, suspending agent and stabilizer, both in aqueous systems and in dairy systems.

Under the SeaFeed project the researchers will concentrate their activities on the production and sustainable legal collection of marine macroalgae for later fractionation and application of their fractions in food and animal feed. This will be supported by the Botanical Institute of USP, the Botanical Institute of São Paulo, the Fishery Institute, UNESP / FMVZ and the Rio de Janeiro Institute of Fishery Foundation. Also there are Brazilian companies participating in the project producing algae such as Algae Company in Ceará and D'Alga Aquicultura Urbana, as well as German companies Coperion, OceanBasis, Scheid AG, Deutsche Tiernahrung Cremer and Van Hees.

In the Teuto-Brazilian project we will study pre-selected marine algae produced in marine cultures and in multitrophic systems associated with fish and oyster breeding. In addition, algae will be tested and collected in duly authorized banks through sustainable management.

In Germany, in another project, the Fraunhofer Institute IVV is already conducting research, with partners from the European Union for the use of algae as a possible substitute for salt.

About Fraunhofer Institute IVV

The Fraunhofer Institute IVV is part of the Fraunhofer_Gesellschaft, Europe's largest application-oriented research organization, with a staff of 24,500 people, 69 Institutes in Germany and more than 80 research centers worldwide.

The Fraunhofer IVV stands for high-quality food products and safe, effective, and convenient packaging systems. Efficient use of raw materials and minimal environmental impact are priorities in all our development work. We also transfer our technologies and expertise to applications outside the food and packaging industries. Companies and research organizations appreciate the Fraunhofer IVV as a business partner. People are inspired by our research work and the resulting products.

In Brazil, Instituto IVV implemented in 2012 the Fraunhofer Project Center for Innovations in Food and Bioresources at ITAL (FPC-ITAL), in partnership with ITAL. This Project Center was created to service the industrial sector and help boost competitiveness in all stages of the food and packaging production chain, seeking innovations in process technologies and the development of new products in order to add value along the supply chain. The infrastructure of FPC-ITAL allows it to carry out tests at near-industrial scales, as well as to assess the economic viability of processes. The main disciplines studied at this center are: Energy and Materials from Renewable Resources; Innovations in Packaging; Functionality, Health and Nutritional Aspects of Food; Quality and Sensory Aspects of Food.