Amanda Swinimer - The Science and Spirit of Seaweed

Discovering Food, Medicine and Purpose in the Kelp Forests of the Pacific Northwest

Amanda Swinimer

Copyright 2021 Amanda Swinimer

Foreword copyright 2021 Vera Rnningen

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted, in any form or by any means, without prior permission of the publisher or, in the case of photocopying or other reprographic copying, a licence from Access Copyright, .

Harbour Publishing Co. Ltd.

P.O. Box 219, Madeira Park, BC , V0N 2H0

www.harbourpublishing.com

Front cover photo by Chris Adair

Back cover photo by Jennifer Jellett

Back cover illustrations by Claire Watson

All photographs by Amanda Swinimer except where otherwise noted.

All illustrations by Claire Watson except where otherwise noted.

Leonard Cohen quote on : Good Advice for Someone Like Me by Leonard Cohen. Copyright 2000 by Leonard Cohen, used by permission of The Wylie Agency ( UK ) Limited.

Isak Dinesen quote on : Excerpt(s) from Seven Gothic Tales by Isak Dinesen, copyright 1934 by Harrison Smith & Robert Haas, Inc., and by Isak Dinesen. Copyright renewed 1962 by Isak Dinesen. Used by permission of Random House, an imprint and division of Penguin Random House LLC . All rights reserved.

Anas Nin quote on .

Paul Hawken (ed.) quote on : Excerpt(s) from Drawdown: The Most Comprehensive Plan Ever Proposed to Reverse Global Warming edited by Paul Hawken, copyright 2017 by Paul Hawken. Used by permission of Penguin Books, an imprint of Penguin Publishing Group, a division of Penguin Random House LLC . All rights reserved.

Chef Louis Charest portrait on : MCpl Anis Assari, Rideau Hall OSGG - BSGG 2020

Painting on : Original oil painting by Christina Smith, copyright 2013.

Edited by Caroline Skelton

Indexed by Nicola Goshulak

Cover and text design by Shed Simas/Ona Design

Printed and bound in South Korea

Printed on paper certified by the Forest Stewardship Council with vegetable-based ink

Harbour Publishing acknowledges the support of the Canada Council for the Arts, the Government of Canada, and the Province of British Columbia through the BC Arts Council.

Library and Archives Canada Cataloguing in Publication

Title: The science and spirit of seaweed : discovering food, medicine and purpose in the kelp forests of the Pacific Northwest / Amanda Swinimer.

Names: Swinimer, Amanda, author.

Description: Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: Canadiana (print) 2021023945 X | Canadiana (ebook) 20210239603 | ISBN 9781550179613 (softcover) | ISBN 9781550179620 ( EPUB )

Subjects: LCSH : Marine algae. | LCSH : Marine algae culture. | LCSH : Marine ecology. | LCSH : Kelp bed ecology. | LCSH : Marine algae as food.

Classification: LCC SH 390 . S 95 2021 | DDC 338.3/7189dc23

This book is intended as an educational resource. If you plan to forage for your own seaweed, please get the proper education to ensure it is done ethically, safely and sustainably. Although this book contains general information about the medical benefits of various seaweed species, please consult with a medical professional about any specific treatments.

This book is dedicated with love to my mom and dad, who have always encouraged me to follow my dreams, and to my sister Jen and brother Dan, who have cheered me on every step of the way.

I have felt my life rise and fall and rise again to the rhythm of the tide. I have taken it all out there with me. The good and the bad, the pride and the shame, the fear and the joy, the sadness and the love, and I have woven it with the mighty kelps, the brilliant greens and the blushing reds. Together, we have forged a gift of this life I have been given.

If you dont become the ocean, youll be seasick every day.

Seaweeds are probably my biggest life passion. I have eaten, studied and taught about seaweeds for many decades. Seaweeds are my main vegetable, and I am happy to say they have kept me healthy, despite my sometimes not so healthy life choices. As a young student, Amanda was quick to learn what I had to share, and over the years she has become a close friend. She is deeply involved with and in love with the ocean. If you saw her out in our cold North Pacific waters hand harvesting bull kelp, you would know why we call her the Mermaid of the North Pacific. When she first came to one of my seaweed classes, she was thirsty for the knowledge I had to share, and she has continued researching all these years. I am so proud of her work that has now come to fruition in The Science & Spirit of Seaweed.

This wonderful book is filled with scientific knowledge, love and spiritual understanding, which is a rare yet refreshing combination. It will guide whoever reads it into the mysteries within the world of seaweeds. Enjoy.

Vera Rnningen, MSc

The cure for anything is salt watersweat, tears, or the sea.

I learned about WWOOF , Willing Workers On Organic Farms, in my early twenties, when I was volunteering at a permaculture farm called Finca Ipe on the west coast of Costa Rica. Others who were living and working on the farm, like I was, told me that they had heard about it in the WWOOF catalogue. They told me tales of travelling all over the world by living, eating and volunteering on organic farms.