Proximate Composition and Mineral Content of Laver Porphyra yezoensis from the Korean Coast

To measure the proximate composition and mineral content of laver Porphyra yezoensis, we collected 30 raw and 30 dried laver from the major production area of the south coast of Korea (Busan, Goheung, Haenam, Wando). The approximate composition of a 100 g edible portion of raw laver was $89.9{\pm}1.4$ g moisture, $3.7{\pm}1.0$ g protein, $0.5{\pm}0.2$ g lipids, $2.1{\pm}1.8$ g carbohydrate and $3.9{\pm}0.6$ g ash. The approximate composition of a 100 g portion of dried laver was $8.9{\pm}1.6$ g moisture, $31.5{\pm}6.5$ g protein, $1.9{\pm}0.3$ g lipids, $48.4{\pm}6.5$ g carbohydrate and $9.3{\pm}1.1$ g ash. No clear regional variation in laver composition was observed. The mineral content of laver was expressed as dry weight. The mean macro mineral content per 100 g portion of raw laver was (in descending order): K ( $1,979{\pm}863.0$ mg), Na ( $1,063.2{\pm}498.8$ mg), P ( $658.7{\pm}101.8$ mg), Mg ( $432.3{\pm}83.5$ mg) and Ca ( $394.2{\pm}136.5$ mg). In comparison, the mean micro mineral content of raw laver was (in descending order): Fe ( $243.72{\pm}154.75\;{\mu}g/g$ ), Zn ( $72.76{\pm}30.61\;{\mu}g/g$ ), Mn ( $41.53{\pm}15.33\;{\mu}g/g$ ), Cu ( $4.16{\pm}1.66\;{\mu}g/g$ ) and Ni ( $0.43{\pm}0.70\;{\mu}g/g$ ) No clear regional variation in the mineral content of laver was observed; however, raw laver contained a higher mineral content than dried laver.