Eating algae, this new culinary trend that appeals to restaurateurs

Back from the beach of Saint-Jean-de-Dieu in the bay of Croisic (Loire-Atlantique), Valérie Pédron plunges her hand into her bucket and extracts a few shiny leaves. “Here, we have sea lettuce,” she explains, displaying the fruit of her harvest on a tray like a work of art. “You can recognize it by its translucent ruffled edges. Here, it’s sea hair, called aonori in Japanese. » Delphine and Bertrand, a 53-year-old couple from Nantes, don’t miss a bite. “We know about seaweed, we’ve been eating it for years. What we were interested in was knowing how to recognize it so we could go and pick it ourselves.” Valérie and Jean-Marie Pédron organize about six discovery workshops a month and they’re sold out. Surprising, for a plant with an image that is, a priori, not very flattering and that suffers from a bad reputation due to the “green tides” that have been invading the bays and beaches of the Atlantic for several years. Thousands of dead seaweeds are piling up on the shore due to our agricultural practices, releasing a gas that is dangerous for humans and animals. What is less well known is that seaweed is very beneficial for health in its living form. “Man has always consumed it, but with the arrival of agriculture in Mesopotamia, our civilizations turned away from it in favor of the resources of the land,” recalls Vincent Doumeizel*, oceans advisor to the United Nations.

Chefs’ favorite ingredient

Five millennia later, they are found in cooking, food products and beauty products. According to a study published in April 2024 by FranceAgriMer, the National Agency for Agricultural and Seafood Products, nearly four out of ten French people eat seaweed at home at least once a month, compared to two out of ten in 2014. “They are real nutritional treasures,” emphasizes Hélène Marfaing, agrifood and nutrition project manager at Ceva, a technical innovation center dedicated to seaweed and plants. “Low in fat, they are loaded with fiber and micronutrients.” But that’s not all. They also contain polyunsaturated fatty acids that are valuable for the cardiovascular system and regulating cholesterol levels.

Chefs were the first to take an interest in this green gold. Among the pioneers was Mathieu Guibert, who runs the two-Michelin-starred Anne de Bretagne restaurant in La Plaine-sur-Mer (Loire-Atlantique). “Our establishment is a bit like Twenty thousand leagues under sea ! he smiles. Since we are located facing the ocean, I want to find on the plate everything that we see outside: shellfish, crustaceans but also seaweed, which brings a touch of originality. ” At the bistro Les Pipelettes, in Pau, seaweed is available both raw and cooked, in broth as well as in meat or fish, and even in dessert. Laëtitia Sarthou, at the head of the restaurant, has invented an astonishing recipe for sea lettuce pastry cream. “Seaweed has the advantage of being visually attractive and each having different flavors and textures. Kombu is fleshy and crunchy with a subtly iodized taste while sea lettuce has a slightly lemony note. So you can give free rein to your creativity. ” Many gourmets have ended up being seduced. Like Brigitte, 63 years old. “One day I was offered a meal in a Michelin-starred gourmet restaurant,” she says. “The chef had put veal with sea lettuce on the menu. I didn’t even know you could eat it, but I tried it and it was absolutely delicious!” Since then, this young retiree has enjoyed incorporating seaweed into her menus every week. “People are increasingly looking for plant-based alternatives, local and sustainable products,” notes Hélène Marfaing. Sea vegetables fit in with these consumer trends.”

Vocations are emerging among harvesters, like Hugo Baudet. After difficult years, this former mussel farmer decided to start harvesting algae and producing spirulina. This food supplement based on microalgae is known to increase the feeling of satiety, increase immune defenses and protect the intestinal microbiota. “I wanted to stay in the aquatic environment and spirulina is used to fight malnutrition, which gives meaning to the work,” explains the forty-year-old.

An industrial future

The industry obviously couldn’t ignore the movement. Today, algae find many outlets: in biostimulants for agriculture, cosmetics, pharmaceutical products and even packaging. The start-up Notpla, co-founded in 2014 by the Frenchman Pierre-Yves Paslier, has developed Ooho, a small edible bubble made from algae that can encapsulate liquids such as energy drinks for running. This ecological project earned it the Earthshot Prize in 2022, created by Prince William. The company is currently working on a project for rigid disposable cutlery made from algae. “Southeast Asia is forty years ahead of us,” notes the entrepreneur. “To create a truly profitable sector in Europe, we will therefore have to develop new uses.” And focus on algae farming, which contributes to only 0.5% of food stocks in France. “We are told that we need to eat more plant-based protein to combat the climate crisis, but for now, unless you fish for yourself, you can’t find fresh seaweed to buy anywhere,” says Marie-Claire, an occasional consumer. The green revolution is only just beginning.

*Author of The Algae Revolution (ed. of Ecuador), 2022.