Abstract

The southern coast of Peru presents a wide diversity of seaweed, which could be used as a new sustainable source of nutritional and bioactive compounds. For the first time, we chemically characterized two species of brown (Macrocystis pyrifera) and red (Chondracanthus chamissoi) Peruvian seaweed. Both species contained significant amounts of proteins (5–12%), lipids (0.16–0.74%), carbohydrates (43.29–62.65%) and minerals (1300–1800 mg kg−1 dw: dry weight). However, the profiles of amino acids, fatty acids and minerals were highly dependent on species type. C. chamissoi had a higher content of essential amino acids and minerals than M. pyrifera (170% and 45%, respectively), while the presence of polyunsaturated fatty acids (ω 6) as well as the content of tocopherols was higher in M. pyrifera (15.77 g 100 g−1 and 2.37 µg 100 g−1, respectively). Additionally, both species presented significant concentrations of total polyphenols (39–59 mg GAE g−1) and a high antioxidant capacity (67–98 µM TE g−1). Although M. pyrifera and C. chamissoi seem to be excellent raw materials for the food and nutraceutical industry, both species contained toxic heavy metals (cadmium: Cd and nickel: Ni) which could affect the safety of their direct use. Therefore, new separation strategies that allow the selective recovery of nutrients and bioactive compounds from Peruvian seaweed are required.