At the western edge of France, Finistère – literally ‘the end of the earth’ – is the point where northern Europe meets the Atlantic Ocean. It’s a place of high biodiversity and a centre of European marine science funding. Founded in 1872, the Station Biologique in Roscoff is the oldest marine biology institute in the world. Now, it is one of the European Marine Biological Resource Centre’s 13 stations, and 60 percent of French funding in marine sciences comes to major port and university town, Brest.

1. I N C O R P O R AT I N G
f i s h far m ing t e c h no l og y
November | December 2013
Green gold in Brittany’s blue economy
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The International magazine for the aquaculture feed industry

3. FEATURE
Green gold
in Brittany’s blue economy
by Richard Sillett, deputy editor
A
t the western edge of France,
Finistère – literally ‘the end of
the earth’ – is the point where
northern Europe meets the
Atlantic Ocean. It’s a place of high biodiversity and a centre of European marine
science funding. Founded in 1872, the Station
Biologique in Roscoff is the oldest marine
biology institute in the world. Now, it is one
of the European Marine Biological Resource
Centre’s 13 stations, and 60 percent of
French funding in marine sciences comes to
major port and university town, Brest.
It’s also a historic seaweed hotspot. In
1811, French chemist Bernard Courtois discovered Iodine after extracting the element
from local algae. Kelp is a traditional component in Brittany for food, animal feed and
fertilizer. Local spas have been using it in their
therapies for more than a hundred years. And
now Olmix are one of a group of Breton businesses looking to bring seaweed products into
the modern age, with a new biorefinery the
centrepiece of a process to extract the only
partly understood properties of macroalgae.
Macroalgae extracts
These properties are varied, and macroalgae extracts demonstrate great potential
for a world where new feed sources have to
do much more than provide enough protein.
While the benefits of algae extracts for soil,
animals and humans have been traditionally
acknowledged, research at Roscoff and elsewhere is beginning to grasp the scientific basis
to their extraordinary versatility.
Experimental trials with marine algal
extracts have shown them to have antiviral,
anti-inflammatory, immunomodulating, antioxidant and antitumoral effects. For aquaculture, where fish health and company profits
alike are being stymied by ineffective vaccines
and restrictions on antibiotics, the development of products with such effects is a
tremendously exciting prospect.
The key seems to lie in sulphated polysaccharides, large carbohydrate molecules which
in the plant kingdom only exist in seaweed
(and not freshwater algae or land plants).
Polysaccharides themselves are a structurally diverse kind of molecule, consisting of
a repeating series of monosaccharide units
joined to each other by covalent bonds. These
polysaccharides can branch out into complex
chains, forming polymers of immense potential variability.
Familiar polysaccharides like cellulose and
starch are one thing, but the heart of marine
algae’s benefits seems to be in their sulphation.
Fucans (found in brown algae), Carageenan
(from red algae) and Ulvans (found in green
algae, and which Olmix are harvesting off the
coast of Brittany) are three examples of sulphated polysaccharides, so-called because of the
presence of sulphur in the molecular ‘backbone’
forming the structure of the sugars’. Research
shows that only sulphated algal extracts mimic
the properties seen in natural seaweed.
Ulvan potential
To date, published research has largely
focused on fucans and carageenans, however,
it is the potential of ulvans from green algae
which most excites Olmix’s scientists.
Consultant veterinarian Hervé Demais is
upbeat about them. ‘Because of green seaweeds’ very diverse and versatile chemical
compositions, there is still a lot to discover
regarding their biological activities. Because
of their natural availability on our coasts and
because until now they have been poorly
studied, they are our core target.’
Detailed studies have been carried out to
discover the chemical basis for the antiviral,
anti-inflammatory and immunomodulatory
effects of marine algal
polysaccharides. Tests
with the Herpes simplex
virus have established
that SO3 ions in the
polysaccharides bind with
glycoproteins in the virus,
preventing any entry into
the cell. The greater the
sulphate content, the
more inhibited viral replication becomes. The
effect is stereospecific,
which is to say certain
kinds of polysaccharide
only inhibit certain kinds
of viruses. Research continues into finding more
antiviral ‘matches’ for the
algal extracts.
Animals treated with
fucoidan (extracted from
brown algae) in trials saw
anti-inflammatory effects achieved without
lowering arterial blood pressure. The marine
algal polysaccharides appear to bind with
basal leukocytes (white blood cells), preventing their rolling motion and blocking them
from migrating from the blood stream to the
targeted tissue.
Immunomodulatory effects have also been
18 | INterNatIoNal AquAFeed | November-December 2013

4. FEATURE
observed, and indeed research
into the interaction of marine
sulphated polysaccharides and
the immune system’s Pattern
Recognition Receptors (PRRs)
has recently aroused plenty of
excitement in the animal health
industry. Polysaccharides fucoidan
and λ-carrageenan (from red
algae) have been shown to bind
with PRRs, altering the animal’s
adaptive immune response and
therefore potentially enhancing
vaccine intake.
Information transfer
The miraculous effects of
marine algal polysaccharides
on organisms that naturally
may never encounter them are
neither magical nor even coincidental. The immune system,
like brain functions and science
journalism, relies on the transfer
of information. The sugars that
combine to form long polysaccharide chains can interconnect
at several points in the molecule – a combination of four
distinct sugar monomers can
form 35-560 unique polysaccharides. This variability makes
them ideal vehicles for biological information, activating the
live outside of the ocean. This
may have something to do with
the occurrence of sulphated
polysaccharides in animals, fungi
and bacteria, but not land plants.
It’s this similarity that opens
the lines of communication
between disparate kinds of
organism. Although algae and
mammals are far apart in the
evolutionary tree of life, biological characteristics inherited
from their shared ancestors are
providing valuable opportunities
for human and animal health.
Valorisation
During the recent biorefinery
launch, one word you could hear
over and over again was valorisation, a French word describing
the process of finding uses or
products for new knowledge or
inventions. Essentially, it’s about
turning scientific discovery into
industrial reality.
'It is important to give more
value to algae than a simple commodity,' says Dr Demais. 'Algae
has a lot of particularities that
can’t be found in terrestrial plants
(such as marine sulfated polysaccharides), and these particularities deserve to be exploited
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Technical supervisor
for aquaculture
Adrien Louyer
pictured with Ecofish,
an aquaculture feed
additive from Olmix
still in development
numerous cells and functions of
the immune system.
And although biologists tend
to regard green and often red
algae as plants, the separation
between the marine and land
varieties began 700 million years
ago, as green plants started to
and transformed into high-value
products.
'Valorization means all the
steps and technologies that will
have to be put together to transform a product that nobody was
using, to its potential as a top
product that will achieve its part
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November-December 2013 | INterNatIoNal AquAFeed | 19

6. FEATURE
in the challenge of feeding nine billion humans.
We don’t have a choice but to use all the
opportunities that can be found on earth
to deal with this challenge. Valorisation is to
give the chance to nature to express its full
potential by using high technology.'
The algae biorefinery, the first of its kind,
brings to a larger scale a process already used
by Olmix to extract its ‘green gold’ from
the ocean. The ULVANS (Ulves Valorisation
Nutrition Santé) project has brought them
together with four other local businesses and
research centres to develop a viable algae
sector centred around Plouénan, the coastal
town on the northwestern corner of Brittany.
The 25 million euro investment (subsidised for an amount of 10 million euros by
the regional government) shows how seriously the seaweed economy is being taken
Macroalgae can also
be used in fish farm
design to absorb
toxic molecules from
waste water
frequently link it with water pollution and, if
allowed to decompose on shore, it can be
toxic to humans and animals.
A fleet of small boats patrols Brittany’s
shores, preventing those environmental nuisances and harvesting what for the ULVANS
group is an invaluable resource. Alongside the
more famous scoubidou (a hooked rotating
bar adapted for brown algae, collecting the
seaweed like spaghetti on a fork while leaving
the seabed intact), new methods designed
specifically for green algae are constantly being
developed. Tractors and amphibious vehicles
are also used for harvesting in shallower waters.
The Plouénan plant currently deals with
the washing and grinding phase of the process.
The seaweed enters a series of three tanks by
conveyor belt. First sediment is allowed to fall
away, next the algae ‘leaves’ are separated,
and finally they are spun and dried. The purification process takes six to eight minutes.
Grinding blades then reduce the algae to
millimetre-thick pieces, which are then stored
either for transportation or freezing. The
Tanks in the Roscoff
Station Biologique
laboratory
as an avenue for future growth. During a
bleak period for European economies this
marks a significant bucking of the trend. The
biorefinery itself sits on the site of an unused
artichoke processing plant, which had become
a local symbol for the decline of Brittany’s
traditional agricultural sector.
Indeed, French agricultural cooperative
SICA chose to pool their knowledge after discovering their own work extracting valuable
molecules from vegetables overlapped with
Olmix's own work on marine plants.
Ulva lactuca is
processed at the new
biorefinery
Algae processing
The algae processing carried out at the
plant is a clear example of valorisation in
action. Green algae suffers from many of
the same image problems experienced by
traditional aquaculture. It’s an eyesore, people
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8. FEATURE
warehouse has 4 000 m2 of storage surface
(and further space for 1 000 pallets kept at
-20 °C), and the purification unit can process
five tonnes an hour. Statistics like these make
clear the scale of Brittany’s ambitions for its
algae economy.
The processed algae is taken inland to
Olmix’s plant (and headquarters) in Bréhan,
10 km from the company’s initial base as
a supplier of sulphates for animal feeds in
St-Etienne-du-Gué-de-l’Isle. There, high-value
molecules including sulphated polysaccharides
are extracted and processed into a marketable form.
The advantages include greater control
of the whole process, from harvesting
Interview
Hervé Balusson, Olmix
President and CEO
How will the new biorefinery
transform Olmix and
the algae industry?
'First of all, to my knowledge the new biorefinery is unique and the
first of its kind in the world. The function of this biorefinery is to process
red, brown but mostly green algae, Ulva lactuca, into intermediates to
be further converted into algae concentrates, substrates and molecules.
These will service sectors such as health and nutrition for humans, animals
and plants, as well as the prodution of ecologically friendly material, such
as biodegradable alternatives to chemical-based plastic.
'This biorefinery is a tangible marker of the definite existence of an
algae processing cluster in Brittany. This cluster brings together all the
partners involved in the ULVANS project: Olmix, the SICA du Leon,
PRP, Melspring, Amadéite, Agrival, the CNRS (French National Centre for
Scientific Research) and the University of South Brittany. While Olmix was
instrumental in the foundation of the ULVANS project and the creation
of the refinery, the support from la SICA du Leon and from the CNRS
has been, and remains, of vital importance. When the biorefinery is in full
swing it will be able to supply Olmix and its associates with processed
seaweed with consistency and reliability, in quantity and quality.'
Tell me about how you had the idea to start
exploiting Brittany’s seaweed resources.
'The use and processing of seaweed in Brittany is a very very old story.
Indeed our ancestors, the Armorican Celts, going back 2,500 years, used
seaweed in food, in fodder for the animals, as fertilizers for the land, and to
make soap. Throughout millennia until now the harvesting and processing
of seaweed has supported the activities and the livelihood of large populations established on the shores of Brittany.
'My personal interest, and Olmix's investment in products derived
from seaweed, is not new. It goes back to more than 15 years when
we created our litter conditioner, Mistral, but more forcefully when we
developed Amadeite, a new biomaterial combining a unique mineral with
the green algae, Ulva lactuca.
'Tomorrow we will feed the world through the benefits of macroalgae.
We will feed fish and aquaculture species with macro and microingredients
originating from the green algae. Tomorrow we will produce sustainable and
ecologically sound sources of energy from the green algae biomass.
'Ten years ago many people called me a dreamer when I announced
that green algae could be a source of social and economic benefits and
ecologically friendly products. I had no dream – maybe a vision, and certainly a determination to turn what some called a calamity into a business
opportunity.'
Green algae has a poor image in the modern
world. What benefits do you think Olmix can
bring to the environment and to the region?
'Whenever and wherever large amounts of organic matter are left
to decay in the fields or on the beaches, they generate environmental
nuisances – in particular the foul smells which can be detrimental to the
to finished product, and a steady line of
production crucial for large-scale exploitation. The initial harvest and pre-treatment stages are taken care of by another
ULVANS company, Agrival, leaving Olmix
free to concentrate on preparing their final
product.
First, a concentrated ‘juice’ is separated from
tourism industry. It is precisely with this concern in mind that we invested
many years ago in a barge with specific equipment to collect the green
algae before they reach the beaches.
'I am a Breton and I care for my country. I care for its international
reputation, I care for its environment and I care for its employment at a
time when it is shaken by serious economic turbulence and the closingdown of some large agricultural companies. I am not a nostalgic, I am an
entrepreneur who believes that economy and ecology can be combined
for the wellbeing and prosperity of Brittany.
'The “Blue Economy”, and in particular the harvesting, refining and
processing of the algae biomass, can and will provide jobs in Brittany and
will contribute to restoring employment in an economy facing the challenges of global competition. In Brittany we have the greatest biodiversity
of seaweed in the world, we have the best and most knowledgeable
scientists in algae research, we have great competences and talented
young people.
'We have an ambition to develop and sell throughout the world a
large range of products originating from algae, and originating from Brittany
where the added value will be kept. We want to create jobs and to give
a vision and a future to young Bretons. If sometimes some people blame
me for blowing my trumpet, for sure it is not the trumpet of retreat but
the bugle of the charge.
'Brittany must reconcile economy with ecology, and the Green and
Blue economy with tourism. When Olmix and its partners collect the
green algae on its barge to prevent them to coming to the beaches and
decaying, they act as responsible ecologists.'
I'm quite interested by the word valorization.
As I understand it, it's about the process of
finding uses or products for new knowledge or
inventions. What does valorization mean to you?
'The collection of the green algae from the beaches and their burial
has a cost, and is still costing large amount of money which accumulate
year after year without any real prospect of termination. We believe that
money would have been better spent finding means of preventing the
floating banks of green algae coming ashore, and researching ways of
taking advantages of a difficult situation.
'There is an English saying “where there is muck, there is gold”. This is
true: provided the muck can be converted into gold. Aquaculture trials in
Thailand have illustrated the benefits of macroalgae extracts, substantially
reducing mortality in aqua species. The scientific discovery of the benefits
of the macroalgal sulphated polysaccharides have already been turned into
products and an industrial reality which is going from strength to strength.
'“Valorisation” means giving value to matters and things that have
been regarded as valueless at first sight, and extracting their benefits. Very
often in history progress has been made out of crisis. “Valorisation” also
means valorising the competence and expertise of our researchers, the
dynamism and enthusiasm of our salesmen, the support of their families,
the support of the authorities and of our financial contributors, and finally
valorising the Breton people.
'The processing of macroalgae into feed and food ingredients, into
pharmaceuticals, fertilisers and energy offers great business opportunities,
opportunities for the creation of jobs. Too much time has already been
wasted. The time has come now for action, not for sterile rhetoric.'
22 | INterNatIoNal AquAFeed | November-December 2013

9. FEATURE
the ground algae by way of a belt press. The
dry ‘cake’ can be used as a protein-rich macroingredient, and the juice continues its journey.
A patented process of enzymatic hydrolysis
to extract the molecules takes place in large vats.
The plant site also contains a laboratory where
the same task can be accomplished at a small
scale. This way the extraction process can be
closely monitored, modified and tested, giving
technicians the flexibility to adapt the treatment
of what is a seasonal and changeable raw material.
After the vats, some of the extracts are
combined with montmorillonite clay (also
ground on site) and dried into a powder.
Again, the Olmix lab is closely involved in
the process, analysing samples periodically to
ensure quality and safety are being maintained.
Further research
In 2002 Olmix began to research the concept of using algal polysaccharides to expand
the interlayer space of montmorillonite, and
hence its potential to bind bigger toxin molecules. The company's Amadeite and MTX+
animal health products demonstrated the
viability of the idea and much of the algae
extract is currently used for their manufacture.
There is a benevolent kind of irony in
this recycling of the polluting and potentially
toxic 'green tides' into
products which not
only improve animal
health, but actively
bring down the ecologically-unsound use
of farm antibiotics.
The company has
plans to expand its
range into aquaculturespecific products. At the
seminars and conferences which accompanied
the biorefinery launch,
many aquaculture and
fish feed professionals were looking on,
whether speaking or
taking notes.
A new complementary feed, Ecofish,
is currently in the development stage. in a university study to bring
the same benefits to
shrimp as to livestock,
and a new nutraceutical,
Ecofish, is currently in
the development stage.
Algal extracts containing sulphated
polysaccharides at Olmix’s laboratory in
Bréhan, France
In focus:
Marine sulphated polysaccharides
by Dr Hervé Demais, scientific advisor, Olmix
'Sulphated polysaccharides are very diverse and versatile compounds. Sulphated polysaccharides found in seaweeds share
common structural features with other sulphated chemical
structures which are found in other lineages of the evolution and
that exert some biological properties.
'Regarding especially the immunological domain, it has recently been demonstrated that some cellular receptors of complex
organisms can recognise specific structures that are common to
groups of related microbes. These recognition mechanisms are
the base of what is called the innate immunity. The cell receptors
involved are called pattern recognition receptors (PRRs).
'The innate immune system recognizes molecular structures
that are characteristic of microbial pathogens, but not mammalian cells. The microbial substances that stimulate innate immunity are called pathogen-associated molecular patterns (PAMPs).
Some examples of PAMPs are lipopolysaccharides (LPS) and
mannose-rich oligosaccharides.
'There are different types of PRRs, among which the toll-like
receptors which recognize more specifically the bacterial LPS
and peptidoglycans, and the C–type Lectin-like receptors which
recognize more specifically the surface carbohydrates with terminal mannose and fructose. We can see clearly here that the
presence of specific sugars under the form of polysaccharides is
one of the common features of those PAMPs.
'Many publications today show that, just as PAMPs are recognized by mammalian cells, many different seaweed polysaccharides
(fucoidans, carrageenans and ulvans) can be chemically recognized
by mammal PRRs thanks to their structural similarity. The presence
of sulphated rhamnose in those algal polysaccharides seems to be
one of the key elements to the recognition mechanisms.
'Those recognition mechanisms trigger some of the cell and
organism's defence mechanisms, the first being a signal transduction
pathway called the NF-KB pathway in mammals leading to the activation of the first steps of inflammation and antiviral mechanisms.'
These are interesting times for Brittany,
as it begins to look to the sea again to
revitalise its economy, and its scientists and
businessmen scramble to understand and
find markets for its marine resources. Olmix,
meanwhile, is continuing its expansion into
new markets and industries. Wherever algae
is seen in the coming decades, it is likely they
will be there.
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