Caulerpa lentillifera

Scientific classification

Kingdom:        Plantae

Division:          Chlorophyta

Class:   Bryopsidophyceae

Order: Bryopsidales

Family:            Caulerpaceae

Genus: Caulerpa

Species:           C. lentillifera

Binomial name           Caulerpa lentillifera

J. Agardh

Caulerpa lentillifera is a species of bryopsidale green algae from coastal regions in the Indo-Pacific. This seaweed is one of the favored species of edible Caulerpa due to its soft and succulent texture.

They are also known as sea grapes or green caviar. C. lentillifera is farmed in the Philippines, where it is locally called ar-arosep, lato, arosep or ar-arosip (as variant names), latok in the Malaysian state of Sabah, and in Okinawa where the plant is eaten fresh.

The pond cultivation of C. lentillifera has been very successful on Mactan Island, Cebu, in the central Philippines, with markets in Cebu and Manila.

About 400 ha of ponds are under cultivation, producing 12–15 tonnes of fresh seaweed per hectare per year. C. lentillifera is also eaten in Okinawa, where it is known as umi-budō (海ぶどう?), meaning "sea grapes".

C. lentillifera is usually eaten raw with vinegar, as a snack or in a salad. In the Philippines, after being washed in clean water, it is usually eaten raw as a salad, mixed with chopped raw onions and fresh tomatoes, and dressed with a blend of fish sauce or fish paste (locally called bagoong) and vinegar. It is known to be rich in iodine.

Caulerpa Lentillifera is a sea weed. It belongs to the genus of Caulerpa and the family of Caulerpaceae. They are shiny green, grape like plants mainly used as vegetables.

It has created waves in the international food market because of its high nutritional value. It is a popular form of delicacy in Japan and Philippines, termed as the next best thing in the sea food industry.

Caulerpa Lentillifera is commonly known as Sea Grapes, Green Caviar, Lelato, Ararusip, Lato and Umi-budo.

Caulerpa Lentillifera is a sea weed. It is actually a single cell organism.

Size: The weed grows up to about 2 to 5 meters. The diameter of the plant is usually 2mm in diameter. The branches are about 20 mm long.

Shape: The plants are small and branches are erect. The structure is grape like. Each grape is a tiny spherical bead and these are tightly packed on a vertical stem to form a sausage like shape.

The grape, through a narrow channel is attached to the stem. These bunches of grapes emerge from a long horizontal stem that creeps over the surface.

Texture: The sea weed is robust, crispy, watery and slimy. Its softness makes it edible.

Color: The color of this sea weed ranges from bright green to bluish and at times olive green.

Taste: Caulerpa Lentillifera tastes like sea water. It somewhat tastes like other algae and is slightly salty.

Caulerpa Lentillifera is mainly available in Indonesia, Philippines, Thailand, Vietnam and Japan. It is also distributed in tropical areas like Kenya, Madagascar, Mauritius, Mozambique, Somalia, South Africa, Tanzania and Papua New Guinea.

Caulerpa Lentillifera grows in warm, shallow lagoons around the world. They grow in coral rubbles and rocks. They also grow in sandy or muddy sea bottoms. These species are best adapted to pond culture. It cannot survive in fresh water. In Philippines, surface drains are placed around the ponds to remove fresh water.

Plantings are usually done by hand. Harvesting begins about two months after first planting and then the sea weed is pulled out of the muddy bottom.

The water temperatures range between 25 to 30 degrees Celsius. The harvesting is done after every two weeks. The harvested plants are washed thoroughly in sea water, to get rid of sand and mud. They are then sorted out and packed.

Caulerpa Lentillifera is a highly nutritional sea weed. A 100 gram sample of these sea weeds is taken. The figures are given approximately.

Crude Protein 12.46-12.51 mg

Crude Lipid     0.76-0.96 mg

Crude Fiber     3.0-3.37 mg

Ash      23.21-25.28 mg

Carbohydrate 59.27 mg

Moisture         24-26 mg

Soluble Fiber   16-18 mg

Vitamin C        34.5-34.9 mg

Sodium            8917.46 mg

Potassium       1142.68 mg

Calcium          1874.54-1874.94 mg

Magnesium    1028 mg

Iron     21.37 mg

Zinc     3.51 mg

Caulerpa Lentillifera is highly nourishing as it contains vast proportions of minerals and vitamins.

People in Okinawa believe that if they eat this sea weed then they recover from serious illness as it contains high amounts of Vitamin A, Vitamin C and minerals. It is effective for heat injury.

Being a good source of Magnesium, Caulerpa Lentillifera reduces high blood pressure and prevents heart attack.

This category of sea weed suppresses the cancer cell effect.

It is rich in iodine which makes it useful for people suffering from thyroid problems.

Caulerpa Lentillifera or Green Caviar is used in garnishing or eaten raw. Apart from edible uses it has no other uses as such.

It is eaten raw with vinegar.

It is used in salads.

It is largely eaten as snacks.

Caulerpa Lentillifera is recently used in Sushi.

It is used as an ingredient in Salmon Rolls.

It makes an ingredient in potato pancakes.

Caulerpa Lentillifera is also used in potato slices.

A toxic substance named caulerpicin causes weakness, sleepiness, dizziness, trembling, scratching of the lips and even death have been reported.

So the weeds must be chosen carefully for consumption. This species of sea weeds produces toxins to protect themselves from marine fish. This makes it toxic and unfit for human consumption if not cleansed properly.

Caulerpa Lentillifera is very sensitive to cold. This survives in temperatures ranging around 20 to 35 degrees Celsius. Therefore, if kept in the refrigerator, it tends to wither due to cold. After washing with water, it cannot be kept for a long period of time, one has to consume it quickly.

Some toxic substances can be present in Caulerpa Lentillifera, so it is essential that one should during pregnancy. It is recommended that one should consult the doctor before consuming it.