This paper examines the characteristics of small-scale seaweed farming in South Sulawesi, assesses the role of middlemen in supporting seaweed production and marketing, and details the pattern of the local seaweed procurement chain. The research uses data gathered through interviews and focus group discussions with 220 seaweed farmers, as well as traders and middlemen, in Takalar and Jeneponto districts.

In this paper, Widowati et al. estimate the potential area and carbon absorbed in seaweed cultivation in the Takalar water area in South Sulawesi and estimate the increase in the local economy if potential areas were optimally cultivated. The research is based on data collected through satellite imagery, base maps, spatial data and field surveys. It found that existing seaweed cultivation covers less than 10 per cent of the potential area of 59,731 hectares.

Seaweed farming is predominantly practiced in shallow waters where other sensitive ecosystems such as seagrass beds are also likely to occur. This study examined the effect of shading, trampling and varying intensities of seaweed farming on seagrass in a shallow bay of a traditional fishing village in South Sulawesi. Methodology involved manipulating different levels of shading and trampling in experimental plots over a homogenous seagrass bed and experimental seaweed farms of differing farming intensities.