Apart from the uniqueness of edible seaweeds as a highly nutritious food commodity, the Department of Science and Technology (DOST) has found out that it can also provide a natural fertilizer capable of increasing rice yield by over 65 percent. DOST Bicol Regional Director Tomas Briñas here on Thursday said a field trial conducted in Bulacan by the team led by Dr. Gil Magsino from the National Crop Protection Center of the University of the Philippines-Los Baños (UPLB-NCPC) recently came out with this breakthrough. In the study, carrageenan, an indigestible polysaccharide (carbohydrate) extracted from edible seaweeds, when degraded into a nanoparticle size through irradiation, turns out to be an effective growth promoter and inducer of resistance against rice's major pests, Briña said.

DOST finds good rice fertilizer in seaweeds. (2015, November 20). Panay News, p.C2