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The unexpected benefits of seaweed for our health
For our fifth episode, we’ll dream of being on the shoreline, breathing the strong wind, and talking about seaweed. Have you put on your rubber boots?
Some people frown a little when we bring up this topic…
And yet, seaweeds are true nutritional treasures, perfect as part of a balanced vegetarian diet, and when well prepared, they are simply exquisite. Long undervalued in France, they have become very fashionable.
Often regarded as superfoods that add a subtle and original iodine note to dishes, seaweeds have even started appearing recently on the plates of top chefs.
Dulse, Nori, Kumbu royal, Wakamé, Alaria : we could even write poems about them!
According to the FAO, world production rose from 2 million tonnes in 1970 to more than 25 million in 2013: 90 % comes from seaweed farming, the remainder being composed of wild species. 60 % are used in pharmaceuticals, cosmetics or fertilizers.
But 40 % end up on our plates in one form or another : fresh, as condiments, dried, frozen, incorporated into culinary preparations.
The French, who cultivate and harvest 80,000 tonnes of it along the 2,700 km of Brittany’s coastline, nonetheless consume only 1,500 tonnes per year, compared with 2 million for the Japanese.
We therefore have serious progress to make!
Guest: Régine Quéva
A cheerful Breton woman concerned about the planet and the state of our plates. An author for more than 20 years, she has published books with various publishers such as Hachette, Larousse, Flammarion and Marabout, diversifying her subjects.
After an educational series, she turned to science communication, then to practical books.
It was during a “seaweed outing” in Brittany that she discovered these marine plants, for which she is now passionate. She gives lectures, runs training courses, “seaweed outings” and “seaweed cooking workshops” aimed at the general public.
She has written several books on seaweeds, including “The Superpowers of Seaweeds” published by Larousse and “Gourmet Seaweeds” (co-written with chef Catherine Le Joncour) from Flammarion.
My questions
- Comment vous êtes vous intéressée aux algues ?
- Quelles sont les différents types d’algues et lesquelles pouvons nous consommer?
- Quelle algue préférez vous et pourquoi ?
- Quelles sont les bienfaits “santé” des algues ?
- D’un point de vue plus global, en quoi participent elles à la transition alimentaire ?
- Peut-on aussi s’en servir dans les cosmétiques maison ?
- Pourquoi, si elles sont si riches, sont elles si absentes de notre culture culinaire? Nos ancêtres en consommaient-ils ? D’autres civilisations les privilégient-elles ?
- Où les trouver ? Où et quand les cueillir ? (vous insistez sur le verbe cueillir et non ramasser, pouvez vous nous expliquer ?)
- Y’a t’il des contre indications à la consommation d’algues ?
- Comment les cuisiner ? Comment les insérer dans nos recettes de tous les jours ?
- Avez vous une ou deux idées de recette facile pour nos auditeurs?
Resources to learn more
- Le site de Régine Quéva
- Les supers pouvoirs des algues, Larousse, Régine Quéva
- Algues gourmandes, Flammarion, Régine Quéva
- Algues marines, propriétés, usages et recettes, Ole G. Mouritsen, Delachaux et Niestlé.
- Les algues, nos alliées santé et beauté, Sylvie Hampikian, Amandine Geers et Olivier Degorce, Terre Vivante.
The (R)évolutions Alimentaires podcasts are presented by Louise Browaeys
An agricultural engineer (AgroParisTech) with a specialization in nutrition, Louise has been working for ten years in the fields of agriculture, food, and ecology.
She is the author or co-author of several books on food, ecology, permaculture and corporate social responsibility. Notably: “The Share of the Land: Agriculture as Art” (Delachaux et Niestlé, 2014), “Permaculture in Everyday Life” (Terre Vivante, 2018), “The Planetary Diet” (La Plage, 2020).
