Carrageenan
is made up of sodium, potassium, magnesium and calcium sulphate
esters of galactose and 3, 6-anhydrogalactose units. It is a wholly
natural ingredient obtained from certain species of red edible
seaweed called the Class Rhodophyceae. The popular sources for
Carrageenan are the ChondrusCripus, EucheumaCottonii and
EucheumaSpinosum species.
The
Chondruscrispus species grows mainly in cold water territories such
as the northern coasts of the Atlantic while the Eucheuma species are
abundantly found in tropical climates like the Philippines. The
Philippines has successfully launched and maintained numerous
EucheumaCottonii and EucheumaSpinosum seaweed farms providing ample
supply and good quality to meet the growing demand.
There are three
Carrageenan types which are of commercial interest because of the
various applications of hydrocolloids in food and other industrial
uses. They are called the Iota, Kappa and Lambda Carrageenan. Marine
Hydrocolloids Carrageenan uses the EucheumaCottonii for the
production of Kappa Carrageenan and the EucheumaSpinosum for Iota
Carrageenan. ChondrusCrispus species is used for production of Lambda
Carrageenan.

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