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The spores obtained using either of the two sources were grown in 250 ml glass beakers (n = 20−30) filled with enriched (PEM-II; Provasoli, 1968) seawater medium at 15 ◦ C, 70 µmol photon m−2 s−1 and 10 h photoperiod in a growth chamber. The beakers were placed on a shaker set at low speed and the seawater media changed every 5–7 days. Seedlings were allowed to Seawater temperatures and growth [10] Seawater temperatures below 20 ◦ C were regarded as a prerequisite for outdoor culture in all four species.

The highest productivity occurred in Porphyra sp. with yields of 210 g FW m−2 d−1 and the lowest one in P. tenera with yields of 93 g FW m−2 d−1 (Figure 4). Calculations of average seasonal yield per species as related to tank shapes and volumes are summarized in (Figure 5), and they were based on growth experiments presented in (Figures 2–4). From these calculations one can conclude that the highest yields were obtained in 40 L tanks, while the lowest yields occurred in 24,000 L ponds with 600 L tanks in the mid range of [11] 238 Table 1.

Support, under the regional aquaculture strategy for seaweed farming, has come in the form of training workshops and production of training materials. A training video on the seaweed farming techniques typically used in Fiji was produced by the Marine Studies Programme at USP in 2003 with funding from C-SPODP-II, and is available in English, Fijian and Solomon Island Pidgin languages, and the much-in-demand FMC Cottonii and Spinosum Cultivation Handbook (Ask, 1999) has been reprinted. SPC produced its own video to complement the USP one, through its focus on raising awareness in communities about the potential socio-economic benefits of seaweed farming, and produced a farming manual in a comic-book format.