Seafood
Agar-agar
Agar is extracted from red seaweed, mainly Gracilaria, which Indonesia farms in quantity. It is bought and sold on gel strength, a single measured number, and everything about the seaweed and the extraction exists to move that number.
How it leaves the country.
- Powder
- The main trade. Milled to a specified mesh and sold on gel strength for food and laboratory use.
- Strips and bars
- The traditional form, still used in Asian food manufacturing and retail.
- Bacteriological grade
- Purified to a much tighter specification for laboratory media. A different product with a different price.
- Agarose
- A refined fraction for molecular biology. Made by specialist processors rather than by an agar plant.
How it is graded.
One number dominates and the rest of the specification supports it. A supplier who cannot state gel strength under defined conditions is not selling into this trade.
- Gel strength
- Measured under stated concentration and temperature conditions. It is the product, and two agars at different gel strengths are not substitutes at the same dosage.
- Gelling and melting temperature
- Agar sets and melts at very different temperatures, which is the property food manufacturers exploit. Both are specified.
- Moisture and ash
- Basic purity. High ash means salts and residue carried through from extraction.
- Particle size
- How fast it hydrates and how it disperses. Specified as a mesh.
- Colour and clarity
- Off-white powder giving a clear gel. Cloudiness and colour point at incomplete purification.
- Raw material species
- Gracilaria for agar, Eucheuma and Kappaphycus for carrageenan. They are not interchangeable and offers sometimes blur them.
How it is packed.
- Lined bags in cartons
- Food grade liners, sealed. The powder takes up moisture and cakes.
- Volume
- Light and bulky for its value, so a container fills before it weighs out.
- Dust
- Fine milled powder. Handling at destination needs the same care as at the plant.
- Ambient
- Shelf stable dry, and heat over a long voyage does the gel strength no favours.
Where it grows.
South Sulawesi
Sulawesi
Major Gracilaria pond farming and the processing that grew up around it.
East Java
Java
Extraction plants with the laboratory capability the specification requires.
Central Java
Java
Processing serving both domestic food manufacturing and export.
Choosing between this and something else.
Documentation, where applicable.
- Certificate of analysis
- Gel strength, gelling and melting temperature, moisture, ash and microbiology on the shipped lot.
- HACCP certificate
- An extracted food ingredient, so water quality and the extraction process are the controls.1
- Halal certificate
- Frequently requested, and a plant-derived gelling agent is often chosen for exactly this reason.2
- Certificate of origin
- Which form applies depends on the destination and the preference scheme in force with Indonesia.
Questions buyers ask.
How is agar different from carrageenan?
Different seaweed, different behaviour. Agar sets firm and brittle and melts at a high temperature. Carrageenan gels are softer and interact with proteins, which is why dairy uses it. They are not substitutes.
Why does gel strength vary between lots?
Because the seaweed varies with the growing season and the pond, and because extraction conditions move. A serious plant blends to a target and a cheap one ships what came out.
Is it vegetarian?
Yes, it is seaweed derived, which is the main reason food manufacturers choose it over gelatine. Any claim on your pack still has to satisfy your own market's rules.
What does your service cost?
Five per cent of the order value, paid by you and never by the factory. A factory audit starts at $250 depending on location. We work with orders from $10,000 per shipment.
Tell us what you need.
Give us the specification and the destination port. We come back with producer options and an indicative price. Our fee is 5 % of the order value, paid by you and never by the factory.
Sources
- 1General principles of food hygiene and the HACCP system. Codex Alimentarius, FAO and WHO. Checked 3 August 2026.
- 2Badan Penyelenggara Jaminan Produk Halal. BPJPH, Ministry of Religious Affairs, Republic of Indonesia. Checked 3 August 2026.