In the vast expanse of the Yellow and Bohai Bays, sunlight penetrates the blue waves, illuminating the seaweed cultivation area stretching for tens of miles. This is one of the important seaweed cultivation centers in northern China. Seaweed, a treasure of this blue sea area, after being meticulously crafted by modern industry, has been transformed into ready-to-eat nori that is popular worldwide, opening a glorious chapter for Shandong's high-end nori industry.

Natural Endowments: The Golden Production Line at 37° North Latitude
 

Located at 35°-38° North Latitude, the Shandong Peninsula enjoys a temperate monsoon climate, with suitable seawater temperature and salinity for the growth of Pyropia yezoensis, complementing the southern Porphyra yezoensis producing areas such as Jiangsu and Zhejiang. In Rongcheng Bay, at the easternmost tip of the Shandong Peninsula, the surface temperature fluctuation is relatively small, with an average annual temperature of 12.3℃, providing an ideal growth environment for Pyropia yezoensis. From November to the following April, the seaweed enjoys its harvest season. Unlike the robust growth of southern Porphyra yezoensis, the Pyropia yezoensis here has long, ribbon-like leaves with a jade-like luster.

Nori is a delicious and nutritious snack, rich in various B vitamins, nicotinic acid, and xanthophyll, as well as a considerable amount of vitamins A and E, and a small amount of vitamin C. Nori contains about 15% minerals, including potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, iron, zinc, copper, and manganese, which are essential for maintaining normal physiological functions. It is particularly rich in selenium and iodine. These minerals can help the body maintain acid-base balance, benefit children's growth and development, and help delay aging in the elderly. The iron in nori can replenish blood and effectively improve iron deficiency anemia. At the same time, nori is rich in dietary fiber, which can promote intestinal motility, improve constipation, and promote the rapid excretion of toxins and waste from the body, keeping the intestines healthy.

Fine Production: A Precise Journey from Ocean to Table
 

The raw material for making nori is seaweed. As the core seaweed cultivation area in Shandong, the Rongcheng seaweed cultivation area is located in a sea area free from industrial pollution. The freshly harvested seaweed is of high quality and is healthy and green. After drying, the seaweed sheets are transported by an intelligent conveyor belt to the core processing area. The seasoning buckets above evenly sprinkle the filling on the nori. Workers then cover it with another sheet of nori. After drying again, square sandwich nori sheets are formed. After two more cuts, the large sandwich nori is cut into rectangular strips. Throughout the process, a package of sandwich nori undergoes at least seven manual inspections before leaving the warehouse, ensuring that unqualified products are accurately screened out at every stage. High-quality raw materials, mechanized production, and strict sorting, each process is closely linked, ensuring that the sandwich nori produced by Lanrun Weilan Valley is as thin as a cicada's wing, fresh, and delicious.

Product Innovation: Decoding the Wealth Code of the Hundreds of Billions Market
 

With 4,000 mu of seaweed cultivation base and four fully automated seaweed processing production lines, and by introducing advanced fully automated seaweed production equipment from abroad, and cooperating with companies with 20 years of nori processing experience, Lanrun Weilan Valley Industrial Park's processing has sufficient technical support and quality assurance.

Shandong Lanrun Group continues to cultivate the nori leisure food field and has developed and launched a diversified product matrix including sandwich nori, sushi nori, seasoned nori, mixed rice nori, rice roll nori, and nori rolls. Relying on an automated production system and efficient production equipment, the group can produce up to 200,000 sheets of nori per day. Products are exported to Eastern Europe, North America, Central and South America, Russia, and Southeast Asia, and have gained widespread recognition in both domestic and international markets.

In this blue territory, the Shandong nori industry will continue to use technological innovation as its driving force to promote industrial upgrading and transformation. Guided by the carbon neutrality goal, marine ranching will pay more attention to sustainable development, providing higher-quality raw materials for the nori industry. At the same time, Shandong Lanrun Weilan Valley Marine Technology Co., Ltd. will continue to cultivate domestic and international markets, continuously launching healthier, more delicious, and more convenient nori products to meet the diversified needs of consumers. The future of this blue territory is full of unlimited possibilities and hope. (Sun Yan)

From the official platform of China Food Industry