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Research Article Volume 15 Issue 1
Unused resource "Sea Squirt Tunics" used as compost: impact on the growth and nutritional value of agricultural product "radish"
Akiko Yamada Taniguchi, Yozo Mitarai, Machiko Kazami, Haruko Noguchi, Shinichi Oishi
Received: April 08, 2026 | Published: April 16, 2026
Citation: Taniguchi AY, Mitarai Y, Kazami M, et al. Unused resource “Sea Squirt Tunics” used as compost: impact on the growth and nutritional value of agricultural product “radish”. J Aquac Mar Biol. 2026;15(1):64-67. DOI: 10.15406/jamb.2026.15.00442
Abstract
Sea squirts (“Hoya” in Japanese) are tunicates, marine animals mainly distributed along the Pacific coast of Hokkaido and the Tohoku region in Japan. This study investigates the effects of using sea squirt tunics, an underutilized resource, as compost to cultivate agricultural products. This report details the results of cultivating Japanese radishes using sea squirt tunics compost, examining their growth and nutritional value. This research aims to effectively utilize sea squirt tunics, an underutilized resource, and investigate their use as compost, thereby contributing to the recovery efforts following the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake. The objective was to effectively utilize sea squirt tunics and address the waste problem. Component analysis of sea squirt tunics from Miyagi Prefecture revealed that they contained 84.6% moisture, 5.9% protein, 0.3% lipids, 6.3% carbohydrates, and 2.9% ash. Excluding moisture, protein, carbohydrates, and ash were found to be high. Mineral analysis of the sea squirt tunics showed high levels of sodium and magnesium. Radishes grown using sea squirt tunics as compost had larger roots and leaves compared to Control radishes, and their composition showed higher levels of protein and ash. Furthermore, these radishes were higher in sugar, vitamin C, and glutamic acid, a flavor component. Using sea squirt tunics as compost allowed crops like radishes to grow larger, and the high nutritional content confirmed that sea squirt tunics can be effectively utilized as compost.
Keywords: sea squirts tunics, compost, radish, nutritional value, reconstruction support of Great East Japan Earthquake
©2026 Taniguchi, et al. This is an open access article distributed under the terms of the, which permits unrestricted use, distribution, and build upon your work non-commercially.