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In the first study focusing on the Red Sea's Tabuk coast, six edible species of the most common algae were collected to evaluate their approximate composition using AOAC methods, amino acids using ion-exchange chromatography, minerals using atomic absorption spectroscopy, phenolic compounds using the Folin-Ciocalteu method, and ferric-reducing antioxidant power. All the data were significantly ( p < 0.05) different among all the studied species. The data indicated that the protein content ranged from 9.25% for A. nodosum to 20.06% for H. musciformis. C. racemosa had the highest lipid content of 7.57%. Phosphors varied from 68.2 mg/100 g for A. nodosum to 406 mg/100 g for D. simplex . The largest amounts of calcium (2458 mg/100 g) and iron (29.79 mg/100 g) were found in C. racemosa . The total essential amino acids ranged between 38.16 and 46.82% for A. nodosum and D. simplex , respectively. F. vesiculosus had the maximum content of phenolic compounds (11.06 mg GAE/g). A. nodosum had the highest antioxidant capacity (1.78 mg TE/g). The research concluded that algae are the main effort toward sustainable agriculture to meet the world's food needs. that algae may be used to improve food naturally. To satisfy the criteria for sustainable food, which is one of the pillars of NEOM, numerous studies are required to investigate the natural products available in the Red Sea.

Foods enriched with nutritional compounds and biological activities, especially antioxidants, are considered healthier for human and/or animal consumption. Seaweeds are rich sources of biologically active metabolites and are used as functional foods. In this study, proximate compositions, physicobiochemical characteristics and oil oxidative stability were analyzed for 15 abundant tropical seaweeds (four green—Acrosiphonia orientalis, Caulerpa scalpelliformis, Ulva fasciata, Ulva lactuca; six brown—Iyengaria stellata, Lobophora variegate, Padina boergesenii, Sargassum linearifolium, Spatoglossum asperum, Stoechospermum marginatum; and five red—Amphiroa anceps, Grateloupia indica, Halymenia porphyriformis, Scinaia carnosa, Solieria chordalis). All seaweeds were analyzed for the proximate composition, including moisture content, ash content, total sugar content, total proteins, total lipids, crude fiber, carotenoid content, total chlorophyll content, proline, iodine content, nitrogen-free extract, total phenolic content and total flavonoid content. Green seaweeds showed higher nutritional proximate composition, followed by brown and red seaweeds. Among the different seaweeds, Ulva, Caulerpa, Sargassum, Spatoglossum and Amphiroa showed high nutritional proximate composition compared to other seaweeds. High cation scavenging, free radical scavenging and total reducing activities were observed for Acrosiphonia, Caulerpa, Ulva, Sargassum, Spatoglossum and Iyengaria. It was also observed that 15 tropical seaweeds contained negligible amounts of antinutritional compounds, including tannic acid, phytic acid, saponins, alkaloids and terpenoids. Nutritionally, green and brown seaweeds provided higher sources of energy (150–300 calories per 100 g) compared to red seaweeds (80–165 calories per 100 g). Additionally, this study also confirmed that tropical seaweeds improved the oxidative stability of food oils and, therefore, might be recommended as natural antioxidant additives. The overall results confirm that tropical seaweeds are potential sources of nutrition and antioxidants and may be explored as functional food, dietary supplementation or animal feed. Additionally, they may also be explored as food supplements for fortifying food products, as food toppings or for garnishing and seasoning foods. However, a human or animal toxicity analysis is required before any conclusive recommendation for daily food or feed intake can be made. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Foods enriched with nutritional compounds and biological activities, especially antioxidants, are considered healthier for human and/or animal consumption. Seaweeds are rich sources of biologically active metabolites and are used as functional foods. In this study, proximate compositions, physicobiochemical characteristics and oil oxidative stability were analyzed for 15 abundant tropical seaweeds (four green—Acrosiphonia orientalis, Caulerpa scalpelliformis, Ulva fasciata, Ulva lactuca; six brown—Iyengaria stellata, Lobophora variegate, Padina boergesenii, Sargassum linearifolium, Spatoglossum asperum, Stoechospermum marginatum; and five red—Amphiroa anceps, Grateloupia indica, Halymenia porphyriformis, Scinaia carnosa, Solieria chordalis). All seaweeds were analyzed for the proximate composition, including moisture content, ash content, total sugar content, total proteins, total lipids, crude fiber, carotenoid content, total chlorophyll content, proline, iodine content, nitrogen-free extract, total phenolic content and total flavonoid content. Green seaweeds showed higher nutritional proximate composition, followed by brown and red seaweeds. Among the different seaweeds, Ulva, Caulerpa, Sargassum, Spatoglossum and Amphiroa showed high nutritional proximate composition compared to other seaweeds. High cation scavenging, free radical scavenging and total reducing activities were observed for Acrosiphonia, Caulerpa, Ulva, Sargassum, Spatoglossum and Iyengaria. It was also observed that 15 tropical seaweeds contained negligible amounts of antinutritional compounds, including tannic acid, phytic acid, saponins, alkaloids and terpenoids. Nutritionally, green and brown seaweeds provided higher sources of energy (150–300 calories per 100 g) compared to red seaweeds (80–165 calories per 100 g). Additionally, this study also confirmed that tropical seaweeds improved the oxidative stability of food oils and, therefore, might be recommended as natural antioxidant additives. The overall results confirm that tropical seaweeds are potential sources of nutrition and antioxidants and may be explored as functional food, dietary supplementation or animal feed. Additionally, they may also be explored as food supplements for fortifying food products, as food toppings or for garnishing and seasoning foods. However, a human or animal toxicity analysis is required before any conclusive recommendation for daily food or feed intake can be made.

Food resources are limited in arid countries such as the United Arab Emirates (UAE); the salinity of the groundwater, together with a lack of natural fresh water sources and arable land, force the country to import most of its food. However, seaweed could play an important role in providing a locally available food resource, as it does not require fresh water and arable land to grow. The traditional use of several seaweed species as food sources has been documented in Asia and the Americas, where their nutritional composition has been well reported. Although the UAE's aquatic environment is quite harsh due to high water salinity (over 40 g/L) and high surface water temperatures (over 35 °C), its native seaweed species could play a role as a food source in this arid region, thereby bolstering the country's level of food security. To evaluate its potential in this context, fresh samples of the native Ulva intestinalis seaweed were collected in the shallow waters of Abu Dhabi Emirate, UAE. These samples were calculated to contain 34.38 ± 0.24 kcal, with a biomass composition of 5.185 ± 0.04% carbohydrate, 3.32 ± 0.14% protein, and 0.04 ± 0.01% fat (by dry matter). Of all the minerals present in the biomass, potassium had the highest concentration (7947 ± 319.5 ppm), followed by magnesium (3075.9 ± 1357 ppm) and sodium (756.3 ± 478 ppm). The water-soluble vitamins B1, B2, B3, B6, and C were below the detection limit in the samples. The rich concentration of essential minerals such as potassium, magnesium, iron and zinc in Ulva intestinalis makes it a promising novel food source. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first experimental study to examine the feasibility of using seaweed that is native to the UAE as a nutritional and sustainable food source in order to address the challenge of food security currently being faced by the country. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]