Gracilaria

A Food Grade Agar ~

Roughly 90 percent of Gracilaria agar is used for food applications, and because it offers a plant derivative instead of animal-based proteins (like Knox or Jell-O), products with Gracilaria are trending in consumer demand.

Think of it as a vegetarian Knox gelatin.

Food prep cooks and chefs boil Gracilaria in water and add it to recipes for a gel effect. This means icings for cakes, doughnuts and sweet buns (to name a few sweet treats) and meringues hold up better.

Bakeries love it because it means their carefully crafted works of art with icings won’t stick to the plastic wrapping or waxed paper sheets as easily. And this agar is shelf stable, so no refrigeration is required. It’s also perfect for the creation of vegetarian marshmallows.

Gracilaria agar can be culturally grown from seeds. In Chile, farmers spike ropes with the seeds and then lease stretches of beachfront, where they tap the ropes into the bottom of the ocean. They grow the seaweed on the ropes, cut it, and send it to manufacturers for processing.