back to search results
Less Info

The shallow reef flats between Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Ceningan—two small islands off the southeast coast of Bali, Indonesia—are ideally suited for growing carrageenophytes, a type of red seaweed that was introduced in the area in the 1980s. Farmers tie seedlings to thin ropes in the shallows and harvest them a month or so later. After it is harvested and dried, factories process the seaweed to extract carrageenan, a thickening agent used in everything from ice cream
to toothpaste. Though Indonesia is one of the largest producers of seaweed in the world, production in Bali has waxed and waned due to fluctuating prices, high labor requirements, and opportunities for higher-paying jobs in the booming tourist industry. When tourism plummeted during the Covid pandemic, many Balinese who had rights to small family seaweed plots returned to farming, but the future of this artisanal industry is uncertain.

Filename
STNMTZ_20220728_44989.TIF
Copyright
©2022 George Steinmetz
Image Size
5464x3640 / 113.8MB
www.georgesteinmetz.com
Contained in galleries
The shallow reef flats between Nusa Lembongan and Nusa Ceningan—two small islands off the southeast coast of Bali, Indonesia—are ideally suited for growing carrageenophytes, a type of red seaweed that was introduced in the area in the 1980s. Farmers tie seedlings to thin ropes in the shallows and harvest them a month or so later. After it is harvested and dried, factories process the seaweed to extract carrageenan, a thickening agent used in everything from ice cream <br /> to toothpaste. Though Indonesia is one of the largest producers of seaweed in the world, production in Bali has waxed and waned due to fluctuating prices, high labor requirements, and opportunities for higher-paying jobs in the booming tourist industry. When tourism plummeted during the Covid pandemic, many Balinese who had rights to small family seaweed plots returned to farming, but the future of this artisanal industry is uncertain.

All images ©George Steinmetz. Please contact us for usage.