As an industry and a cooking ingredient, seaweed is gaining ground in Brazil

In Paraty, Brazil, Aparecida Rosa Ayres runs Rancho Ayres, a restaurant built around Kappaphycus alvarezii, a Philippine-origin seaweed she began cultivating in 2013 after a childhood spent around native Ilha Grande Bay seaweed. A 2021 course from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro and the Paraty government on seaweed's bioeconomy potential led her to found Algas na Mesa Paraty, blending gastronomy with cultural revival among Caiçara families displaced decades earlier by highway construction.

The family turned to seaweed partly because declining fish stocks pushed her husband to travel further for smaller catches. The restaurant now serves seaweed tempura, brownies, couscous, vegan mayonnaise, and cocktails, alongside educational tours and a thalassotherapy massage service.

Nationally, Brazil produces about 1,100 metric tons of this seaweed annually, concentrated in three states under environmental agency permits, though the commentary notes only a small fraction of the country's output goes to food — most is processed into agricultural biofertilizer. A researcher cited in the piece notes the seaweed's nutritional and antioxidant properties, while acknowledging food use remains a minor slice of the industry.

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