REPORT OF THE TRAINING COURSE ON SEAWEED FARMING
The importance of seaweeds as a marine resource has recently been emphasized due to the increasing demand for them as food and raw materials in the manufacture of industrial colloids, e.g., agars, carrageenan and alginates which find varied uses in industries. In addition, the production of seaweeds through culture is now recognized as a very productive alternative source of livelihood and employment especially in developing countries in tropical Asia where a large portion of the shallow coastal fishery resources have been or are being depleted. With some exception, the present seaweed production in the tropics comes from the harvesting of wild stocks which if not regulated can result to the depletion of these stocks. Thus, it is necessary that culture and/or management of local stocks should be developed for the economic species to enhance and maintain their productivity.
The farming and gathering of economic species of seaweeds are labour-intensive form of activities which can help increase employment opportunities among the coastal communities and thus play an important role in enhancing their socio-economic conditions. The general ecology and productivity of shallow subtidal areas have been shown to greatly improve upon the introduction of seaweed farming. Additionally, the introduction of a management scheme for the gathering of local stocks shall also help conserve them.
The training of fishery extension workers, farm managers and future seaweed farmers in the practical methods of culturing economic species on Eucheuma, Gracilaria and Caulerpa, will promote further expansion of seaweed farming; on the inventory and assessment of local stocks of useful seaweeds shall promote and enhance the productivity and conservation of these species. It is for these reasons that this regional training was organized and implemented.
This training course was designed to develop and promote qualified expertise in seaweed farming to help in food production, provide cash crops and open new alternative employment to enhance the socio-economic welfare of coastal communities as well as offer practical training on seaweed farming and management of natural stocks of economically important seaweed species; improve technical knowledge about seaweeds and acquire practical skills in seaweed farming techniques, processing and marketing.
The course consisted of lectures and field training on the culture of Eucheuma, Caulerpa and Gracilaria, assessment and rational utilization of natural stocks of economic species such as Sargassum, post-harvest and quality control of the produce and field study visits to existing farms. Basic lectures on the biology and* ecology of seaweeds as well as methods on the identification and preparation of seaweed materials for research were also included as background information.
The training course was sponsored jointly by the ASEAN/UNDP/FAO Regional Small-Scale Coastal Fisheries Development Project (RAS/84/016) and the Regional Seafarming Development and Demonstration Project (RAS/86/024). The Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources (BFAR), Department of Agriculture and the Marine Science Institute (MSI), College of Science, University of the Philippines at Quezon City were joint hosts to the training course.
The training was implemented from May 2–21, 1988, All lectures and laboratory activities were conducted at the Marine Science Institute at Diliman campus of the University of the Philippines at Quezon City. Additional field practice were conducted at the Bolinao Marine Laboratory at Bolinao, Pangasinan, Luzon and at the farm of Marine Colloids (Philippines) Inc. at Danajon Reef, Northern Bohol. Additional field visits were made at the Caulerpa farm of Mr. Berame at Calawisan, Mactan Island, Cebu and the processing plant of Marine Colloids (Phils.) Inc. at Mandaue, Cebu.
A total of 18 trainees from seven countries attended the course. Thirteen out of the 18 participants were from the ASEAN countries; Indonesia, Malaysia, Philippines and Thailand while three were from the Peoples' Republic of China, one from India and two from South Korea. Of the 18, twelve were supported by RAS/84/016 and the rest by the RAS/86/024.
The names, designations and addresses of the participants are listed in Annex 1.
The training programme consisted of lectures on the various aspects of seaweeds as a resource and methods of cultivation of economic species, field and laboratory demonstrations, field hands-on practice, and visits to existing farms and processing plant.
The list of the lectures/lecturers, practical exercises and details of the schedule of activities are found in Annex 2.
The training course was designed, planned and implemented by the Technical Director, Training Coordinator and the Training Staff. The Technical Coordinator was assisted by a number of technical staff and assistants. A complete list of the training staff, their designations and addresses are found in Annex 3.
The opening ceremony was brief. The Technical Director officially opened and gave the overview of the training course. Dr. E.D. Gomez, Director, Marine Science Institute gave a brief opening remarks (Annex 4); Mrs. M.N. Delmendo, Project Coordinator presented the participants; Mr. J.R. Montemayor, Assistant Director, Bureau of Fisheries and Aquatic Resources introduced the guest speaker and Mr. Tengku Ubaidillah, FAO Representative in the Philip-pines gave the keynote address. His opening address is in Annex 5.
Basic lectures on the identification, biology, ecology and economic importance of sea-weeds were made as primary requirement in the training to provide the participants with adequate, background and baseline information, with the intention of bringing to a certain common level such knowledge among the participants because of their highly varied background on the subject. The participants were made to understand the different kinds and importance of sea-weeds (Lecture 4) as a resource; they were also taught how to recognize them (Lectures 5 and 13). In order to enhance the learning capability of the participants on the subject they were asked to familiarize themselves with the different representatives of sea-weeds (Practicum 1) as well as identify the seaweed specimens utilizing the keys and references (Practicum 2 and 3). The effects of the physico-chemical factors on the structure and distribution of seaweed communities was also discussed (Lecture 3) to enhance the perception and understanding of the participants on the ecology of the seaweeds.
Because the ultimate goal of the training was to produce and encourage expertise to go into resource development work on seaweeds, the environmental aspects of such development (Lecture 1) and the evaluation of the status of the resource and the potential areas for development (Lecture 2) were also emphasized in the lectures. In addition, they were also exposed and trained (Lecture 6 and Practicum 7) in the scientific method of sampling and assessment of natural stocks of economic species (Lecture 6), a basic requirement in natural stock management for conservation purposes.
The major coverage of the course dealt primarily with the potential target species for seaweed farming development (Lecture 7), the production of seaweeds through culture and gathering of natural crops (Lecture 8), the post-harvest practices and processing of seaweed products (Lecture 9), problems related to seaweed production (Lecture 10), the Eucheuma industry (Lecture 12), and the potentials of polyculture of seaweed with marine animals (Lecture 11). In order to develop and/or enhance the skills of the participants in the farming of seaweeds, hands-on field training in and/or study visits in operational farms of Eucheuma and Caulerpa (Practicum 4 and 5) and field demonstration on the field culture of Gracilaria (Practicum 6) were undertaken. The participants also made study visit to the processing plant for carrageenan (Field Visit 1) to observe the post-harvest handling and processing of Eucheuma. The discussion of farming of economic species such as Eucheuma, Gracilaria and Caulerpa dealt mainly on the selection of sites, methods of culture, management and problems associated with production. The list of lectures and practical exercises are found in Annex 2.
A total of 11 days were spent on field trips to Cebu, Bohol and Bolinao, Pangasinan in which all the participants were required to attend. The first leg of the trip was a visit to Marine Colloids (Philippines) Inc. (MCPI) where the participants listened to the lecture on post-harvest preparation and processing of Eucheuma and an observation tour of the processing plant MCPI in Mandaue, Cebu. This was followed by the field trip to Danajon Reef, Northern Bohol where the Eucheuma farm of MCPI is located. The participants listened to a review lecture on the various stages in the farming of Eucheuma such as site selection, building of the farm, preparation of seedlings and planting, maintenance of the farm, and harvesting and drying. This was followed by hands-on practicum on these various activities. The rest of the time was spent in visits and hands-on training in different farms within the area.
The third field trip was conducted at Bolinao, Pangasinan. Field activities consisted of hands-on exercises on the field culture of Gracilaria and Caulerpa and the field exercise in the inventory and stock assessment of natural stocks of seaweeds. These activities were done on the reef fronting the Bolinao Marine Laboratory of the Marine Science Institute, University of the Philippines. Exercises on the collection and preparation of herbarium materials of seaweeds for research was also done utilizing the facilities in the laboratory. The list of practical exercises and schedule of field trips and major activities is in Annex 2.
The participants of each participating country were required to submit and deliver a country experience report on seaweed resource development. The reports were delivered during two special evening sessions. The purpose of the country reports was to share with the other participants information on the seaweed farming and relevant activities from each of the participating countries. The country reports are included here as Part III of the report.
A period of discussion was programmed after each lecture. The participants were encouraged to ask questions or clarifications on certain points of interest, comments and additional information on the topic in relation to their own country experience. The question and answer and discussion sessions were also done during the country/institution reports session.
A brief discussion or review of the methodologies and their significance and relevance to practical exercises were made prior to the actual field hands-on activities. During such review or discussion, the participants were made aware of the importance of these activities to seaweed production, management and conservation.
The evaluation of the training course was made during the last day of the training period. The participants were supplied with evaluation questionnaires for them to record their perceptions and opinions on both the technical and non-technical aspects of the training course. Some participants did not fully answer the questions. The results of the evaluation were pooled and are included in this report as Annex 6.
Examination of the evaluation results showed that as a whole the primary objectives of the training course have been achieved. A more detailed examination of the sectoral components of the evaluation results revealed some interesting insights on the conduct and the technical level of the training, the differences in the professional background, the individual idiosyncracies, and ability of the participants to communicate or understand English as the medium of instruction.
The large spread in the number of respondents to some questions relating to the technical level of training reflects the highly mixed representation among the participants.
The closing of the training course took place on May 20, 1988. Mr. Justo R. Monte-mayor, Assistant Director, BFAR delivered the closing remarks (Annex 7) while Dr. G.C. Trono, Jr., Technical Director delivered the closing statement on the training course (Annex 8). The graduates from the ASEAN and Non-ASEAN countries were presented by Mr. J.R. Montemayor. This was followed by the awarding of certificates. Mrs. M.N. Delmendo, Project Coordinator introduced the guest speaker, Dr. Herminio R. Rabanal, who delivered the keynote address (Annex 9). A representative of the participants gave a response to the training programme and impressions in the conduct of the course (Annex 10).
