A Moroccan woman gathers red seaweed, known as agar, in the coastal town of Moulay Abdellah, Morocco. The red algae is the town's main industry, and due to the frenzied harvesting of this aquatic plant the ecological balance of the region is in danger. Morocco annually produces 14,000 tonnes of red seaweed, 40 per cent of which is exported. In the West, the plant is treated and used as a stabilising agent by meat and fish canneries, in baked goods, and dairy products.