Executive Summary : | The database of the FAO stated that 828 million people worldwide would be hungry and undernourished in 2021. These conditions mostly occurred in developing countries, where nearly 11-13% of people were malnourished (FAO, 2022). Due to the lack of land and water for irrigation, scientists recommend fresh and processed seaweeds as a solution to eradicate food scarcity and malnutrition. These seaweeds have been available in Asian countries for the last decade (Mantri, 2019). Seaweed is a delicacy in the traditional Japanese and Chinese diets, and many food items are offered in local markets across Southeast Asian countries. Globalization has led to changing eating habits worldwide, with seaweeds being introduced to new regions due to their health benefits in macrobiotic diets. In 2018, the production of seaweed increased to 32.4 million tonnes from 10.6 million tonnes due to many applications, including its use as an edible, which contains a high quantity of dietary fiber and other important nutritional properties. The global green seaweed production through cultivation is increasing significantly day by day, and most of it comes from cultivation in many countries. The Republic of Korea contributed 6321 wet tonnes of Monostroma nitidum, and South Africa produced 2155 wet tonnes of Ulva in the early stages of the 21st century. Edible seaweed has a higher fiber content than land-based foods, and its soluble fibers can bypass digestion and travel directly through the digestive system. Especially the genus Ulva contains 9-14% protein, 34.27% insoluble fiber, and 20.53% soluble fiber, which are most important for reducing cholesterol and sugar levels in the blood and also helping to reduce the risk of diabetes (Yaich et al., 2011). However, the major constraints in edible seaweed farming are the production of pure quality raw materials and supplying them to the processing industries. Hence, wild collection and offshore cultivation methods have many drawbacks due to environmental fluctuations, which affect the nutritional properties of seaweeds. Therefore, tank-based edible seaweed cultivation plays a major role in this sector, and it has many advantages, like being free from natural calamities, the ability to manipulate the nutritional properties, and the capability to maintain the culture conditions in different quantities. Once the technology has been standardized, the tank cultivation process may be applied to supply raw material to the processing industries, which are now largely dependent on wild collection and cultivation. In this connection, this project aims to develop a novel method for improving the biomass yield by standardizing the light feeding strategy, nutrient assimilation rate, and examining the fertilizer potential of seaweed extract. It will also perform a techno-economic analysis of the operation and energy requirements for the tank-based cultivation of the economically important edible seaweed Ulva. |