The University of Cádiz and the Technological Center for Aquaculture (CTAQUA) organize, from September 12 to 15 and at the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters, the ULVA international conference, from fundamental biology to aquaculture. More than 80 participants from academia and industry come to Cádiz from 25 countries in Europe, Australia, the US, Korea and Puerto Rico.
The Aula Magna of the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters of the University of Cadiz will host this meeting, which will include a program of conferences, poster presentations, a special meeting of SMEs dedicated to the cultivation and application of seaweed, and a showcooking with Ulva and other macroalgae, by the Israeli chef Boaz Tsairi.
Ulva algae species are present worldwide and abundantly in many coastal ecosystems. Its use as a food, fertilizer or feed ingredient has a long history. In addition, its extracts cover a wide range of potential applications, from functional compounds in aquaculture feed, to their use in cosmetics, pharmaceuticals or biomaterials in medical applications.
The presidents of the local organizing committee, the researcher and head of the Department of Applied Research and Innovation of CTAQUA, Erik Malta, and the Professor of Ecology at the University of Cádiz, Ignacio Hernández, will welcome this afternoon, at 5:30 p.m. . Subsequently, the vice-rector for Scientific and Technological Policy of the UCA, Mª Jesús Mosquera, the Councilor for the Environment of the Cádiz City Council, Rocío Sáez, the managing director of CTAQUA, Juan Manuel García de Lomas, and the president of the COST Action SeaWheat, Muki Spighel.
This international meeting is part of the COST SeaWheat action, which aims to take advantage of the Ulva and explore its commercial applications in human food, animal feed, pharmaceutical industry, among others. The action, called “The sea wheat of tomorrow: Ulva, a model for innovative marine aquaculture”, has the participation of more than 100 scientists from 28 countries who have joined forces to significantly improve the biology of this species. Led by Professor Muki Shpigel of the University of Haifa (Israel), it is financed by the European Union.