Are We Looking in the Wrong Place for Our Minerals? Why the Future of Nutrition May Include the Ocean
Since we can remember, we've been told to eat our vegetables.
ANDDD we absolutely should - we highly think so since we're plant based. :)
But what if some of the nutrients we're searching for on land can also be found in an ecosystem covering more than 70% of our planet?
The ocean.
As conversations around soil health, climate change and the nutritional quality of our food become more important, scientists are paying increasing attention to an ancient food source that coastal communities around the world have relied on for generations: seaweed.
At See Mos, this isn't a new wellness trend.
For our family and sea moss farmers in Saint Lucia, sea moss is part of a much older relationship between people, food, culture and the sea.
And science is beginning to help explain why marine plants deserve a bigger place in the conversation about nutrition.
Our Food System Has a Micronutrient Problem
Micronutrients such as iron, zinc, magnesium and calcium are needed in relatively small quantities, but they play important roles throughout the body.
Researchers continue to investigate how modern agriculture, soil health and a changing climate may influence the nutritional quality of the crops we eat.
The picture is complex. Not every crop is becoming less nutritious, and scientists caution against the simplistic claim that our soil has been universally "depleted" of minerals. Agricultural practices, crop genetics, soil health and environmental conditions can all influence the concentration of nutrients within food.
Climate change adds another layer. A widely cited study published in Nature found that crops grown under the elevated CO2 levels expected later this century show measurably lower concentrations of zinc, iron and protein — with wheat, rice, field peas and soybeans among the crops most affected.
"Zinc and iron deficiency is already a global health problem for billions of people." — findings echoed across multiple Free-Air CO2 Enrichment (FACE) studies
So perhaps the question isn't:
"Are our food crops still nutritious?"
Of course they are.
A better question may be:
"Are we taking advantage of all the nutrient-rich foods available to us?"
Because our food system doesn't end at the shoreline.
Sea Moss Nutrition: Meet the Ocean's Mineral-Rich Plants
Sea moss belongs to a much larger family of marine macroalgae commonly known as seaweed.
Unlike terrestrial plants, seaweeds grow surrounded by mineral-rich seawater. That environment gives them an extraordinary ability to absorb and accumulate minerals and trace elements.
A comprehensive review published in the journal Life found that minerals and trace elements can account for approximately 8% to 40% of the dry weight of seaweeds — a notably high share compared to most land vegetables (note: this is general seaweed percentage not specifically for sea moss).
Researchers identified minerals including:
Iron
Magnesium
Calcium
Potassium
Phosphorus
Iodine
Sodium
The researchers noted that seaweeds can contain higher concentrations of certain minerals than terrestrial or freshwater food sources, and described marine algae as a potentially important addition to the human diet.
Where Ocean Minerals Fit In
Land plants pull nutrients through roots and soil. Sea moss draws from an entirely different system: seawater. That's not a replacement for kale, spinach or beans — it's a different nutritional pathway worth adding alongside them.
This matters most for people eating predominantly plant-based, since plant foods provide non-heme iron, a form the body absorbs less efficiently than the heme iron in animal products (pairing it with vitamin C helps close that gap).
Sea moss isn't a treatment for iron-deficiency anemia or any other deficiency — it's one more whole-food source of minerals in a varied diet.
Why Sea Moss Is More Than a Wellness Trend
Long before sea moss became something you'd add to a smoothie on social media, coastal communities throughout the Caribbean were harvesting and consuming seaweed.
In Saint Lucia, that relationship continues today. Our See Mos sea moss is grown and harvested in the waters of St Lucia by our family farmers who understand these ecosystems because they have worked within them for generations.
The sea provides the growing environment. The sun helps dry the harvest. Traditional knowledge guides the process.
Ocean-grown. Sun-dried. Traditionally prepared.
For us, those words aren't marketing language. They describe where our food comes from.
Not All Sea Moss Is the Same — Here's How We Answer That
The same ability that lets seaweed absorb minerals from seawater also means it can accumulate excessive iodine, heavy metals or other environmental contaminants, depending on species, location and growing conditions. That's not a reason to avoid sea moss — it's the reason source and traceability are important decisions to make as a buyer.
At See Mos, we believe you should be able to ask, and get real answers to:
Your Question | Our Answer |
Where was it grown? | Praslin, St Lucia |
Who grew it? | Larry & Jervania Serieux |
How was it harvested? | Hand & ocean harvested |
How was it processed? | Sun-dried, traditionally prepared |
Could Sea Moss Be the Future of Food? Nutrition's Future Might Be Blue
For most of modern food history, we've looked toward the land to feed ourselves. But scientists, governments and food innovators are increasingly exploring the potential of the ocean.
Seaweed cultivation has another significant advantage: it doesn't require arable land and generally doesn't require freshwater. That means marine foods could contribute to a food system that's both more nutritionally diverse and less dependent on increasingly stressed agricultural resources.
This is where the See Mos story becomes bigger than another superfood.
It's about reconnecting wellness with its source. It's about recognizing traditional Caribbean knowledge. It's about supporting the people who cultivate our food.
And it's about understanding that nourishment doesn't only grow from the soil beneath our feet.
Sometimes, it grows beneath the waves.
Know Your Sea Moss. Know Your Source.
The next era of wellness shouldn't be about chasing another miracle ingredient. It should be about knowing our food better — where it grows, who grows it, how it's harvested, and what it brings to our bodies, communities and ecosystems.
That's why we're proud to bring traditionally harvested Saint Lucian sea moss from our farmers to your daily wellness ritual.
From our family of farmers to yours.
Ready to taste the difference traceability makes?
Sources & Further Reading
Leandro, A., Pacheco, D., Cotas, J., Marques, J.C., Pereira, L. & Gonçalves, A.M.M. (2020). Seaweed's Bioactive Candidate Compounds to Food Industry and Global Food Security. Life, 10(8), 140.
Myers, S.S., Zanobetti, A., Kloog, I., et al. (2014). Increasing CO2 threatens human nutrition. Nature, 510, 139–142.
Additional FACE (Free-Air CO2 Enrichment) research on crop zinc/iron decline, University of Illinois Institute for Genomic Biology.
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