Laver Story
Laver is edible seaweed which is also called algae or porphyra. It sticks to rocks in the sea just like moss and grows to be 14 to 15cm for length and 5 to 12cm for width. It has a long oval or egg shape like a rope with wrinkles at its border. The upper part of its body is red brown and the lower part looks blue green. It consists of one layer of cells and those cells span in an irregular triangle, rectangular or polygonal shape. Its cross section looks like a square and the height is no bigger than the width. Cells of the lower part have egg or oval shapes and generate big colorless rhizoids. It usually appears in the shores of Korea during October, grows between winter and spring and then gets disappearing by summer. It can be found in Korea (Jeju, southern coast and west coast), Japan and China.
Laver Farming
Laver farming became popular long time ago in the East as the natural outcomes couldn't satisfy the needs. For laver farming, materials to which conchospores will be attached are installed in the sea during autumn in which time those conchospores are available for seedling and cultivation. Laver tends to easily stick to everything including rocks and twigs but nets made of bamboo bundles and synthetic fibers are usually used for laver farming. Back bays with calm waves are appropriate for laver farming with a specific gravity between 1.018 and 1.028 where stream water runs into the sea. It is not good for farming when the gravity becomes at about 1.017 by freshwater due to flooding. Temperature and illumination are also important to cultivate laver well and therefore the depth to install laver beds should be carefully selected taking into account changes to water levels due to tides.Types of Laver
Traditional Laver - It is also called "Joseon Laver" with a bigger size and more holes due to thin cuting but offers excellent taste that many of the customers love to enjoy. Most of traditional laver products are produced in the west coast of Chungcheongnam-do.
