/oss/taxonomy/term/666/all en /oss/article/quackery-you-asked/can-phytoplankton-cure-cancer <p>It’s a compelling story. Tom Harper and his wife built a large shellfish farm in British Columbia but found it hard to make ends meet because of the expense of the feed that was needed. So Tom decided to grow his own. The main food for shellfish in the wild consists of phytoplankton, microscopic plants also known as algae. Harper devised a way to grow algae in large tanks, concentrate the plants into a paste which he then fed to his shellfish. Remarkably, the concentrate turned out to be more nutritious than any commercial product and his shellfish grew more quickly and to a larger size.</p> Tue, 06 Nov 2012 17:22:06 +0000 Joe Schwarcz PhD 1751 at /oss