Seaweed harvest companies on the Mendocino Coast Mendocino Seaweed Company Back in 1980, when Eleanor and John Lewallen began harvesting the sea vegetables and demonstrating them at Mendocino Farmers' Market and simple-living fairs around Northern California, seaweed was a bit of a hard sell. They drove their products, with the labels that Eleanor had drawn by hand, to a route of natural food stores in the Bay Area, and gave samples everywhere they went. In 1986 the  Ocean Protection Coalition  presented a plaque to John and Eleanor Lewallen John states: "Santa Cruz is such a precious place; I love visiting my dear friends there. There is even an Eleanor Lewallen Day in Santa Cruz. Back in 1986 when I was invited to speak to Save Our Shores about getting permanent protection for our oceans, I was surprised with the presentation of a plaque which now hangs on our wall." It reads in part and gives thanks to: "The  Ocean Protection Coalition  of Mendocino County and especially Eleanor Lewallen - who have led the movement for a Marine Sanctuary and have much work ahead to realize their dream of an ocean free of oil drilling... Now, there fore, I, Michael E. Rotkin, Mayor of Santa Cruz, do Hereby declare November 18 'Eleanor Lewallen Day' in the city of Santa Cruz..."  Ocean's Gift Since Eleanor's death in 2001, John has remarried to Barbara (Babs) Stephens-Lewallen who has harvested seaweeds on the Atlantic and the Pacific. Together John and Babs host the yearly  Wild Seaweed Convivium  at their farm in Philo. Ocean Harvest Sea Vegetable Co Owned by Terry Nieves, Ocean Harvest Sea Vegetable Company is a thriving seaweed wildcrafting cottage industry. In business since 1980, "we careully wildcraft, sun dry and store our sea vegetables, to bring our clients the best available Seaweed from the Pacific Northwest." "Seaweed contains all of the trace minerals in the exact quantities to supply our bodies needs. Seaweed has a high level of sodium algenate which removes heavy metals and radioactive isotopes from the body. Ocean Harvest sea vegetables are excellent for vegan, vegetarian and raw food diets." Rising Tide Sea Vegetables Owned by Larry Knowles, Rising Tide Sea Vegetables continues to be a thriving cottage industry and has been fine-tuning the techniques involved in wildcrafting, drying, and storing sea vegetables since 1981. "Seaweed contains more vitamins and bio-available minerals than any other class of food. It is an extraordinary source of chelated, colloidal minerals and trace elements. The large brown seaweeds known as "kelp" are also rich sources of alginic acids (sodium alginates), which remove heavy metals and radioactive isotopes from the body and the bones. Seaweed is also a good source of protein and enzymes for people on vegan, vegetarian, macrobiotic, and raw food diets." The Rising Tide Sea Vegetables website offers a good deal of information on the  health benefits of eating seaweeds  and research on bioavailability of vitamin and mineral content. Sea Palm, Mendocino Nori, Pacific Nori, Mendocino Wakame, Pacific Wakame, Bull Kelp, Sea Whip Fronds, Pacific Kombu, Sweet Kombu, Sea Lettuce, Mermaid Fronds, Pacific Ocean Ribbons Hand Harvested and Sustainably Wild Crafted Locally