Phylum : OchrophytaClass : PhaephyceaeOrder : LaminarialesFamily : LaminariaceaeGenus : LaminariaSpecies Name : Laminaria digitata (Hudson) J. V. LamourouxCommon Names : kelp / kombu / konbu / haidai / oarweed ©Prof Michael D GuiryLaminaria digitata / kelp around the shores of IrelandKelp seaweed / algae is a brown seaweed, one of 2200 species of brown seaweeds.This brown seaweed is kelp in Ireland, Europe and USA and it is also known as Kombu / Konbu in Japan and Haidai in China.26000 mt of the Giant Kelp Macrocystis pyrifera is harvested off the Coast of California, USA per year.This brown seaweed is extensively used and again you will probably have eaten or used this seaweed without knowing!Its E Numbers are E400 to E405 - and produces alginates. Again please check out the UK Food Guide for more information - The UK Food GuideAlong Ireland's shores - kelp is the brown seaweed that just appears at low water / tide. It is also known as oarweed.A traditional use for this Irish seaweed was as fertiliser but other brown seaweeds such as Ascophyllum nodosum and Fucus serratus are now gathered for their nutrient content.Kelp / Laminaria was also gathered and burnt for "potash" in the 18th Century. The potash was used for the glass industry. It employed hundreds of people around the Irish coastlin, but ceased in Ireland and Orkney & Western Isles, Scotland when other cheaper sources were discovered.Kelp / Laminaria gathering was revived in Ireland and Scotland in the 19th Century to the 1930s when it was discovered that iodine ( I ) could be extracted from Laminaria and therefore used for thyroid treatment. Again it was a cheaper source from Chile that stopped this harvesting and extraction. However, Kelp is still used today for its iodine content and for Thyroid problems.In Japan and China, Kelp / Laminaria is used to make Dashi - a traditional soup stock and is used extensively in cooking. It can also be added to root Vegetables to reduce down their cooking time.Uses : Extraction of alginic acid Fertiliser Commercially used for toothpaste, soaps, ice-cream, tinned meats As a binder, stablilizer, Emulsifier or moulding agent.
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