*This story was produced with the support of the Pulitzer Center
Five years ago, the Silva family abandoned fishing to cultivate seaweed in Boca del Río, located in the Macanao Peninsula, the western portion of Margarita Island.
In the family home, with a zinc roof and unplastered blocks facing the sea, a reporter from Armando.info recently witnessed a dozen men and women, alongside elderly individuals and children, spending an entire night cleaning and packing 36 bags of dried red seaweed collected during the harvest. The work was exhausting, intensified by the accumulated hunger from several days.
Dawn found everyone without breakfast, with the little ones playing quietly while the adults maintained silence filled with expectations. That day, which actually repeats every six weeks—the duration of the algae’s reproductive cycle—they were supposed to head out to sell the harvested talos. In other words, it was their opportunity to earn some money and cope with their needs.
But a blackout left the island without electricity.
The explosion of the Muscar Operational Complex gas pipeline belonging to the state oil company Pdvsa in the Monagas state halted commercial activity in much of eastern Venezuela, including Margarita. As a result, the bags that the Silva family had filled with such care were left stranded on the ground. Along with their hopes.
The Silva family is one of 346 families engaged in red algae cultivation in Margarita, a term that actually encompasses a couple of exotic species: Kappaphycus alvarezii and Eucheuma denticulatum. This information appears in an internal report from the Socialist Institute of Fishing and Aquaculture (Insopesca) accessed by Armando.info. The document from the entity, under the Ministry of Fishing and Aquaculture (MinPesca), adds that these community-based producers tripled their artisanal output in just one year, increasing from 387 tons in 2023 to 919 tons in 2024.
The same occurred with exports. From 2019 to 2023, international sales rose from 263 tons, valued at $413,000, to 1,351 tons worth $2.1 million, according to records from the United Nations Comtrade database.
However, this boom does not translate into significant profits for artisanal fishermen, the primary harvesters of red algae. Families like the Silvas earn an average of $10 per person each month for labor that they perform manually. This salary is calculated based on production figures from Insopesca.
Conversely, four companies primarily reap the profits from this burgeoning business. These are Tide C.A., Agromarina Biorma Aquaculture, C.A., Revolution Seaweeds C.A., and Sea-Mar H&B, according to the Insopesca report. Only the first two hold export permits and, also according to Insopesca, managed to export red algae valued at $6.47 million between 2019 and 2023. However, two other firms not officially registered in the report, Sea-Mar H&B and Kor-Ven C.A., also appear as exporters in international trade databases, such as Panjiva and Importgenius.
Currencies Float Among the Sargassum
The global seaweed market was valued at around $16.5 billion in 2023, according to international consulting firms, which predict an expansion that could reach up to $20.9 billion by the end of 2029.
The value of this resource stems from its multifunctional applications in the food, cosmetic, and pharmaceutical industries. From the red algae species cultivated in Margarita, originally from Asia, carrageenan, a valued gel that functions as a thickener and stabilizer in foods such as ice cream, yogurt, gelatin, processed meats, sauces, and beers, is derived. In pharmaceuticals, it is used for syrups and anti-inflammatory and antiviral medications. In cosmetics, it optimizes the consistency of creams, shampoos, and toothpaste; and in other industrial products, it serves as a binder in paints, textiles, biofuels, and waxed paper. Its versatility makes it a key ingredient in the industry, lacking any substitutes. It is a red treasure in the Venezuelan sea.
This tremendous potential makes the cultivation and commercialization of red algae one of Nicolás Maduro’s government strategies to develop aquaculture as a sustainable foreign income alternative apart from oil.
The Minister of Fishing, Juan Carlos Loyo, shows enthusiasm for the project, especially with plans to supply the Asian market. In January 2023, the official stated that algae represented 7% of the exports in the fishing and aquaculture sector. This official accounting from his social media account would become clearer only later in October, when the production of seaweed was officially included in the Fishing and Aquaculture Law. In December 2023, the Ministry of Fishing and Aquaculture (MinPesca) and the Ministry of Ecosocialism (Minec) signed a joint resolution to regulate “the sustainable and eco-friendly harvesting, cultivation, and related activities of algae and cyanobacteria species.”
With this resolution, the ministries authorized the four previously mentioned companies for the harvesting of red algae: Tide C.A., Agromarina Biorma Aquaculture, C.A., Revolution Seaweeds C.A., and Sea-Mar H&B.
It is important to note that all these companies began operating up to four years before the legalization of red algae exploitation in 2023, as the history of resource exploitation is not merely marked by sporadic regulations but also profound contradictions.
The most notable contradiction is that the Ministry of Environment prohibited the cultivation of Kappaphycus alvarezii and Eucheuma denticulatum until 2006, considering these species as “potentially degrading and harmful to the environment.” Yet, two decades later, it promotes their production as a “sustainable economic alternative” within the catalog of Venezuela’s exportable fish and aquaculture products.
Companies Propose and Ministries Dispose
Although the cultivation of Kappaphycus alvarezii was banned in Venezuela until 2006 and only received regulation in 2023, over two decades it dispersed along the coasts of neighboring states Nueva Esparta—which includes Margarita—and Sucre, sharing territorial waters.
As mentioned, Tide C.A., Agromarina Biorma Aquaculture, C.A., Revolution Seaweed C.A., and Sea-Mar H&B are among the producers of red algae with their own farms. However, the first two also purchase more than half of the production from artisanal aquaculturists who grow it empirically in the sea, according to the Insopesca report. Executives from Tide confirmed to Armando.info that their company buys, for instance, 40% of its raw material from local aquaculturists, while the remaining 60% is sourced from their own farms.
Tide C.A., an acronym for the Land of Entrepreneurs project, taught the residents of Punta de Piedra to cultivate algae, a port located on the central-southern coast of Margarita Island. Others managed to learn the rudimentary propagation method, consisting of tying the talos—the undifferentiated body of algae or thallophytes, equivalent to the roots, stems, and leaves of terrestrial plants—to submerged nets anchored to the sea floor with plastic bottles serving as buoys. The planting cycles last 45 days, allowing for up to eight annual harvests.
Three authorized companies exported red algae six years before the legalization of aquaculture activity. International trade databases show that between 2019 and September 2023—three months prior to official authorization—Tide, Biorma, and Kor-Ven sold a total of 2,493 tons worth $6.47 million to clients outside Venezuela, according to Importgenius.
Armando.info requested an interview with Insopesca to confirm the terms of the permits granted to the five companies authorized for the exploitation and commercialization of seaweed. However, no response was received by the time of publication.
Tide C.A, owned by William Hoce Fariñas, dominates the market. According to company management shared with Armando.info, everything began with a restaurant named Tide—“tide” in English—located in the inhospitable area of El Guamache on the southeastern coast of Margarita. However, the crisis caused by the pandemic forced them to reinvent themselves. Fariñas, an industrial engineer with a technical degree in navigation and fishing, and his wife, María Gabriela Reyes, a medical professional, decided to capitalize on the abundant seaweed in the area. They quickly obtained permission for extraction.
“The red algae nearly died around the island due to excessive harvesting at that time, and the seed stock was practically exhausted. Even we spent months searching for a bit here and there, once the permission was granted,” Reyes commented to illustrate why, in her opinion, this species is not invasive. In 2021, the company obtained authorization to cultivate algae and currently has 30 hectares of permitted cultivation, of which only 10 are active, she asserts.
“The ministerial resolution of 2023 was not to authorize algae cultivation in Venezuela; that was already legal. It was actually enacted to simplify the cumbersome process of obtaining permits from Ecosocialism and Fishing,” argues María Gabriela Reyes. She adds, “We [Tide] already had the permit since 2020. We were the first to obtain it.”
However, Importgenius data seem to correct the narrative presented by the Fariñas couple. The data indicates that Tide C.A. ventured into the export business even before the pandemic and the resolution that regulated the activity. Between March 2019 and August 2024, the company accounted for 97.4% of marine algae exports, shipping 1,935 tons to international buyers for a total of $6.14 million. During these nearly six years, Chile established itself as the primary destination for Tide’s exports.
According to Insopesca, Tide produces 750 tons of fresh algae monthly, yielding 75 tons of dried algae designated for export. Meanwhile, María Gabriela Reyes claims that they have exported approximately 1,500 tons to date.
Fariñas, 40, originally not from Margarita Island—a local term for someone from afar—is the son of Williams Fariñas, a historic Chavista deputy and former officer in the Venezuelan Air Force. Fariñas Sr. participated in the coup attempt of November 27, 1992, against then-social democrat president Carlos Andrés Pérez. Under Hugo Chávez’s presidency, he held various positions, including coordinating Project Bolívar 2000, serving as Deputy Minister of Social Development, being a member of the Presidential Commission Mission Vuelvan Caras, directing the Currency Administration Commission (Cadivi), and heading the Mixed Tourism Fund of Nueva Esparta state, continuing into Nicolás Maduro’s administration.
In 2021, William Hoce Fariñas showcased extensive cultivation areas during a segment on state television VTV featuring then-Minister of Agriculture, also a former military official, William Castro Soteldo. In that episode of the program Cultivando Patria, Castro Soteldo, who insisted on calling red algae “Cottoni”—a non-scientific term derived from industry—referred to Fariñas as his “son of life” and an “entrepreneurial engineer.” He presented himself as a godfather to this particular venture and the overall activity, despite it lacking official regulation at the time.
Inaccurately, the minister also mentioned that algae had been introduced to the region “by someone,” while Fariñas took credit for discovering its commercial potential.
In that same broadcast, Fariñas revealed that over two million tons of wet algae had been collected in the region, producing 200 tons of dried algae. It takes about ten tons of freshly harvested algae to yield one ton of dried red algae.
On the international market, the average price of a ton of dried algae is $600, according to experts consulted for this report. Currently, Tide C.A. pays artisanal aquaculturists in Margarita about $200 for a ton of dried algae and $22 for a ton of wet algae. Those involved in mariculture, as those working in this field are also known, must “bring” the raw material to a meeting point.
The 2021 television program also featured Tide’s immediate competitor, Agromarina Biorma Aquaculture, C.A., which produces 6.2 tons of dried algae monthly, according to the Insopesca report. Its legal representative is Raúl Rincones, a marine biologist who introduced Kappaphycus alvarezii to Venezuela in the late 90s. Rincones stated in an interview with Armando.info that he buys slightly more than half of his exports from locals who extract algae from natural banks.
Another active company is Revolution Seaweed C.A., which, despite having its own production facilities at the University of Oriente (UDO) in Cubagua—another island in Nueva Esparta, south of Margarita—does not have an export permit. For now, it focuses on storing its own harvest and partially selling it as raw material to Biorma.
The Insopesca report indicates that Sea Mar H&B C.A. plans to set up a plant for extracting carrageenan, an industrial process currently not conducted in Venezuela. Its export volumes represented only 0.07% of the total recorded between 2019 and 2023, according to Importgenius.
However, the growth of the export business in recent years has not reached artisanal aquaculturists. According to estimates from the regulatory agency, monthly production in Margarita generates $18,000 in revenue. This amount, divided among 1,730 registered producers, implies a monthly average income of barely over $10 for each beneficiary.
The Silva family, one of those participating in the activity, considers the sea one of their last resources for survival. Fishermen represent the weakest link in this business. In the sea off Boca del Río, the family’s children dive and, with agile movements, rip the red algae attached to stakes plunged into shallow waters. Upon surfacing, they hand the harvest to their mothers, sisters, and cousins, who receive it silently and head to the dock. There, under the relentless sun, they carefully spread the seaweed on wooden boards, ensuring it is well-distributed for drying. The routine proceeds with a mechanical rhythm as they calculate how much they might earn from this catch from the sea.
A Judicial Background
The introduction of these exotic algae species in the country has also been steeped in controversy. On April 22, 1996, the now-defunct Venezuelan Autonomous Forestry Service (Seforven), under the then Ministry of Environment, today transformed into the Ministry for Ecosocialism, granted the company Cultivos y Biotecnología Marina Biotecmar C.A. permission to introduce five kilos of Kappaphycus alvarezii and Eucheuma denticulatum algae for experimental cultivation.
In October 1997, Biotecmar, founded by marine biologist Raúl Rincones, requested permission from the Ministry of Environment to initiate commercial cultivation of these species in El Guamache Bay, Sucre State. To persuade authorities, the private initiative was presented as an economic opportunity for chronically impoverished coastal communities.
The project initially had a controlled scope, and early tests showed that the Kappaphycus alvarezii species—native to the Indian and Pacific oceans and coral reefs of the Philippines, Malaysia, and Seychelles—could thrive in Venezuelan waters. The species exhibited remarkable resilience to changes in environmental conditions and variations in salinity and light, as well as a high capacity for regenerating from small fragments, allowing for easy dispersion.
However, in 1998, the then Ministry of Environment denied permission for the cultivation of these species and favored the reproduction of the already present Gracilariopsis lemaneiformis. It also imposed a fine of 500,000 bolivars (about $885 at the official exchange rate of that year) on Rincones’ company and ordered the eradication of the exotic species from the area, as well as the cleaning of the site. The ministry based its decision on reports from UDO’s Oceanographic Institute, which identified the potential predatory effect of the introduced Kappaphycus alvarezii.
Indeed, marine biologist Jorge Barrios-Montilla, a professor and researcher at UDO, has published at least four essays on the threat posed by this species. His research conducted in 2007 and 2021 confirmed the presence of this algae in the coral reefs of Cubagua, where it was colonizing the habitat of the so-called fire coral (Millepora alcicornis), evidencing an accelerated degradation process.
Yet, the year following legalization, Barrios changed his stance. In a 2024 academic essay, he classified Kappaphycus alvarezii as an introduced but naturalized species, now established, growing wild in the southwestern marine area of Nueva Esparta state, including the islands of Coche and Cubagua. Aside from Barrios’ work, there are no official studies with scientific backing and independent arbitration that definitively rule on the effects of this species on Venezuela’s marine ecosystem. Moreover, the neglect of environmental authorities extends further: Armando.info visited the cultivation zones in Margarita on four occasions and observed that state institutions do not conduct the necessary technical inspections. They merely census families engaged in seaweed farming and processing.
The reputation of Kappaphycus alvarezii is also under scrutiny abroad. In the 1970s, it demonstrated its high invasive potential affecting coral reefs on Coconut Island in Hawaii. It propagated rapidly there, reaching distant areas and accumulating in lagoon reefs, with a dispersal rate of up to 250 meters per year, primarily driven by ocean currents.
Regardless, Biotecmar, Rincones’ company, continued cultivating red algae while appealing the measure. However, the Ministry of Environment sued the company in 1999 through the Regional Directorate of Nueva Esparta state, claiming it had violated existing regulations, such as the Territory Planning Plan of Nueva Esparta state (1997) and the Norms to Regulate the Introduction and Propagation of Exotic Species of Wild and Aquatic Flora and Fauna (1992).
Biotecmar appealed the decision in 1999 and 2002. In 2004, the SPolitical-Administrative Chamber of the Supreme Court of Justice (TSJ, under Hugo Chávez’s government, rejected the appeals presented by Rincones’ company.
Nevertheless, Biotecmar obtained the dismissal of the criminal action against it in 2006, as in the two years following the TSJ’s ruling, the Public Ministry had failed to provide evidence to support the accusation of illegal propagation of plant species and degrading activities in special areas as outlined in the regulations.
Today, at the helm of Agropecuaria Biorma Aquaculture, Rincones continues to defend his venture, which began with Biotecmar. He asserts that Kappaphycus alvarezii “is now wild” because it has transitioned from being an introduced species to behaving like a native one, adapting to local conditions and propagating naturally.
“I want to be very emphatic: it has never been proven to be an invasive algae, never,” he stated in an interview with Armando.info. “It was simply a convergence of institutions with a lack of a legal framework, with authorities who did not apply technical criteria, and misinformed by biased academics. That was the perfect storm.”
As for the other red algae in question, Eucheuma denticulatum, an endemic Caribbean species first reported on Venezuelan coasts in 1964, there are no known reports of its exploitation or commercialization in Venezuela, despite the regulation promulgated by the ministries of Fishing and Ecosocialism in 2023 allowing for its harvest and sale.
Despite the promising outlook for exports, seaweed cultivation faces numerous challenges. For instance, Insopesca details in its report that the 182 active community farms in Punta de Piedras Lagoon have erected a barrier that hinders the natural flow of water, negatively impacting crop quality. Additionally, the materials used for installations—ropes, mangrove poles, and recycled plastic bottles—have limited durability, are of poor quality, and often cannot be repaired or replaced.
The success of domestic cultivation is not guaranteed, Insopesca acknowledges. Waves and currents frequently wash crops ashore, causing entanglement and total loss. Furthermore, premature harvesting by artisanal aquaculturists, driven by necessity, impacts the quality of carrageenan and decreases its commercial value. Lack of infrastructure, such as adequate storage facilities and drying racks, forces producers to dry algae directly on the ground, which increases impurities and reduces the product’s competitiveness.
With the bags of seaweed they could not sell that day still piled in a corner, the Silvas decided to split tasks. Some remained at home, waiting for any signs from buyers, while others prepared fishing lines and walked to the shore to try to catch food from the sea that they could no longer afford to buy. Eating once a day has become the norm; anything more is a luxury. “God, even if I lack the arepa, let me not lack the strength,” repeats José Luis, one of the family members, like a mantra.