Physical and psychological health: are Quebec algae part of the solution?

Roughly 10% of Quebecers suffer from chronic anxiety, 60% of workers experience work-related stress, and 25% of adults have sleep problems. And that was before the Covid-19 pandemic made things worse. Could part of the solution to these problems be found in algae? That's what researchers from the Institute of Nutrition and Functional Foods (INAF) hope, presenting the preliminary results of their work on the subject as part of BÉNÉFIQ 2021. Due to Covid-19, INAF redesigned this annual meeting between researchers and industry in the form of two webinars held this week. The first, Tasting the Benefits of the Sea, was entirely devoted to marine products and by-products. Lucie Beaulieu, professor in the Department of Food Science and Technology and coordinator of the INAF Marine Products Interest Group, took advantage of this forum to provide an update on her work on the development of an algae yogurt and the extraction of algae molecules that may have benefits for the brain. Some algae are rich in nutrients and contain molecules with antioxidant, antihypertensive, and neuroprotective properties. Additionally, their antimicrobial properties could help extend the shelf life of certain foods while reducing the amount of salt and preservatives that food manufacturers need to add to their products. Professor Beaulieu's team is working with industrial partners to leverage the bioactive molecules in Quebec algae. "Algae are still a largely underexploited resource in our country, but the growing desire to eat locally could open up new markets," the researcher emphasizes. Ongoing work in her lab aims to determine the effect of adding two brown algae, sugar kelp and succulent alaria, to a yogurt matrix. "The results on the product's physicochemical properties are encouraging. We will now call on a panel of experts to evaluate its taste properties."

Furthermore, as part of the Neuronalg program, the researcher and her colleagues have isolated four molecules belonging to a family of compounds, mycosporine-type amino acids, which have a known protective effect on the nervous system. The current work aims to improve the extraction processes for these molecules and to demonstrate their effects on cognitive health. "If the results are conclusive, we will carry out, with our partner InnoVactiv, a scale-up of production of these compounds with a view to their commercialization," summarizes Professor Beaulieu.

Finding a niche for algae

Despite its significant coastline, Canada is a poor relation internationally when it comes to seaweed harvesting, said Jocelyn Bérubé, Executive Vice President at InnoVactiv. "In Canada, we harvest approximately 11,600 tons of seaweed per year, while China ranks first with 14 million tons. Seaweed farming is almost non-existent here, while globally, it is 300 times higher than the harvest of wild seaweed." We still need to find a way to get Quebecers to eat seaweed. In recent years, Professor Beaulieu and the Fromagerie des Basques have made an attempt by developing a cheese made with Quebec seaweed. The work demonstrated the feasibility of adding a red seaweed, the petit goémon, and a kelp to a Camembert-type cheese. The knowledge transfer has been completed, but the cheese has not yet been marketed.

Are Quebecers ready to put algae on their plates? "Food choices are based on several criteria, the two most important of which are taste and nutritional value," says Véronique Provencher, professor at the School of Nutrition, scientific director of the Observatory of Food Quality and researcher at INAF. "We want to eat good food and food that is good for us." To put more seaweed on the menu, you first need to know how to cook it, the researcher emphasizes. The CuisiAlg project, which she leads with Lucie Beaulieu, aims to evaluate the effects of a culinary initiation workshop using seaweed on participants' perceptions and habits. This fall, around fifty people attended a three-hour workshop offered by chef Jean Soulard on the subject. The researchers are now measuring the impact. Furthermore, Professor Provencher believes that the health properties of algae could be leveraged in prepared foods. "The food industry is reviewing some of its products to bring them into line with consumer expectations, particularly with regard to their sodium, saturated fat, and sugar content. This openness to improvement is a great opportunity to make more room for algae and algae extracts in our diets."