[Background music, shot of a building seen from the outside, then of the external sign of the Institute of Nutrition and Functional Foods (INAF) at Université Laval.]
Véronique Provencher: Here in Quebec, there really are a number of standards in terms of food production and processing.
[Shot of Véronique Provencher, music stops.]
So, already, in terms of positive perception, we feel safe, if you will. Because our standards mean that regulations, labelling of ingredients, for example, are compulsory on the various products we buy.
[View of a label of cooked smoked seal, then camera tilts down on the meat contained in the packaging, music resumes.]
So, it makes the consumer feel safe, I think.
[Successive plans for seal products.]
Still, you know, nutritional value is an important aspect to bear in mind when making healthier choices.
[Shot of Réjean Vigneau cutting up meat and passing a piece to a man.]
Réjean Vigneau: If you have a piece of meat, that you need to eat, because you think your iron levels are too low, or because you think you don’t have enough protein.
[Shot of Réjean talking.]
And you want answers to all of your questions. Well, it’s seal meat. It provides all you’re looking for. And I’m not the one who says it, it’s the professionals who tell us.
[Shot of Gil Thériault, seated outdoors.]
Gil Thériault: We’ve done a lot of studies in this area. What we found was that, generally speaking, contaminants – and it’s the same in all mammals, including humans – are collected first of all in the fat, in adipose tissues. And in certain filtering organs, such as the kidneys or the liver; but not in the muscles.
[Close-up shots of meat being cut up.]
But from all the studies we’ve done so far, the only dangerous elements we need to avoid in seals are the adult liver and kidneys, some organs… Et’s clear that the older the animal, the greater the accumulation of dangerous substances. In terms of nutrition, there’s no comparison with meat coming from slaughterhouses.
[Back to Gil.]
You know, beef, pork and chicken, I mean, you make a Pad Thai with all three, then you’re not really sure what’s what, there, often. It ends up having no flavor. Wild meats, including seal, are a completely different thing. You get really special flavors with these meats. And in terms of nutrients, there’s nothing like it. Again, no hormones, no antibiotics.
[Shot of a hand transferring meat from a plate to a hot frying pan, then of skewers of meat in a frying pan.]
Réjean : We want people to taste this meat, which is so good and so healthy. And at the same time, it’s the most environmentally responsible meat you’ll ever eat in your life. It’s not like when… you know; I don’t want to denigrate anything, speaking of chicken, speaking of beef, I’ve got a butcher’s shop, you know!
[Shot of Réjean.]
But it’s not the same.
[Shot of Véronique, seated outdoors.]
Véronique: More and more, I think, Quebecers are taking eating well to heart. So there really is an interest in healthy nutrition. However, there’s often what we call a gap between what we know and what we actually do. So, I would say, in the end, people eat relatively well. But with more vulnerable segments of the population for example, for whom, socio-economic factors such as financial access to healthy food, it’s sometimes more difficult.
[Shot of Éric Tamigneaux, videoconferencing, music resumes.]
Éric Tamigneaux: In the evolution of eating habits, I think people are recognizing that… People are looking for natural products, healthy products. Healthy products are important to them.
[Underwater view of various seaweeds clinging to a rock.]
And seaweed is a sea vegetable, so it has an aroma, it has a color, it has a texture that’s different from that of land vegetables. It has many interesting nutritional properties. It’s rich in antioxidants. Some seaweeds are extremely rich in protein, like nori for example. There’s more protein in 100 grams of nori than in 100 grams of steak.
[Back to Éric.]
Another reason for using seaweed or incorporating it is that it multiplies or amplifies the flavors in the dish to which it’s added.
[Underwater view of various seaweeds.]
Antoine Nicolas: Algae is like a sea vegetable in a way. It’s a plant that lives underwater, in the sea, so we’re really dealing with a sea vegetable.
[Shot of Antoine Nicolas talking, music fades.]
The sea is salty. As a result, they are necessarily more concentrated, actually, than land plants in minerals in particular, and vitamins too.
[Underwater view of seaweed with lots of little fish swimming above.]
It’s so concentrated that it’s almost halfway between a food supplement and, sometimes, even a medicine. You know, if you take green algae, for example, there’s a lot more iron in it.
[Back to Antoine.]
Up to 2700% of your recommended iron intake on 15 grams, for example. Health Canada speaks of 15 grams per serving for seaweed. Green seaweed also contains magnesium, calcium and vitamin B12. The other families are red and brown. Red seaweed also contains more protein. Green and red … there’s more protein.
[Underwater view of brown seaweed, music resumes.]
You have B12 too. And in brown seaweed, in fact, it’s richer in iodine overall.
Lucie Beaulieu: For several years now, there’s been a growing interest in seaweed.
[Plan on two packets of spices, then on two jars of sea relish and tartar mix.]
Consumers are interested and curious. The fact that people are talking more and more about the health benefits of seaweed, that’s also sparking curiosity.
[Shot of Lucie Beaulieu talking in a kitchen.]
And researchers are also becoming increasingly interested, I see, in plant proteins. Because they’re trying to find alternatives to animal proteins, but they’re also trying to find other sources of protein. Because the population is growing worldwide. So it’s like an alternative source of protein.
[Close-up shot of dried green seaweed followed by successive close-ups of dried seaweed packages; music intensifies.]
[Exploramer logo.]
[Background music stops.]
