IMPACT CASE STUDY:
NutraMara
SunMara:
Sustainable Nutraceuticals from Irish Seaweed
Prof Colm O’Donnell (UCD)
Dr Shanmugapriya Karuppusamy (UCD)
#Seaweed, #Nutraceuticals, #Sustainable #Processing, #Natural #Bioactives
This project has received funding from Enterprise Ireland and the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation Programme under the Marie Skłodowska-Curie grant agreement No 847402.
Background
Nutramara is a fast-growing and diversified marine-based functional food company that prioritises sustainability and is focused on developing scientifically validated, high-value marine derived ingredients and seaweed formulations. Seaweeds are used extensively in many applications including nutraceuticals, cosmetics, and pharmaceuticals, but seaweed polysaccharides require costly and labour-intensive treatment before use. This project aims to develop a scalable and sustainable process for nutraceutical extraction from Irish seaweed.
The Commercial Opportunity
The commercial seaweed market is currently valued at €28.1 billion globally, but the use of seaweed as a source of high value compounds is held back by limitations in extraction technology. Ireland is well placed to become a significant player in this industry, thanks to its expansive coastline.
The Innovative Solution
This project is developing a scalable pipeline for the cost-effective manufacture of new seaweed functional foods through natural processes that transform seaweed polysaccharides into value-added bioactive compounds.
The Research Impact
The project is significantly advancing current industry practice in the use of marine polysaccharides for health benefits and allows NutraMara to become a leader in both functional food development and the transition to a circular bioeconomy in Ireland.