According to The Californian, the mollusks - which can be thought of as giant, flattened snails - eat kelp, but to be really healthy they need to eat small amounts of red seaweed as well, said Thew Suskiewicz, a master's candidate at the Marine Lab and a seaweed cultivation expert for the Monterey Abalone Co.
"They're getting lots of starch, and they just need their vitamins," Suskiewicz told the local news organisation.
The red seaweed helps the abalone to grow faster, healthier and more colorful, giving the snails the red hue that gives them their name: red abalone. Red abalone are one of more than 60 species around the world, with the fastest growth rates and the largest sizes.
According to a blind taste test put on by the company and the Highlands Inn, the abalone also taste better, reports The Californian.
Together, Monterey Abalone Co. and the Marine Lab have set up a pilot programme that will make the company's abalone farming operation more sustainable.
Science Discovers a Tastier Abalone
AUSTRALIA - Abalone need to watch their diets to be healthy, according to a collaboration between Moss Landing Marine Laboratories and the Monterey Abalone Co.
