Agar grows in the waters of the Northeast Coast of Taiwan all year round, and April to June each year is the most thriving period for the seaweed. Agar grows on reef rocks three to ten meters below low tide marks and subtidal zones. The first and fifteenth day of each month in the lunar calendar when tides ebb to the lowest tide mark is the best time to pick the seaweed because fishermen can easily stand on a reef rock to pick it. However, they have to wear a wetsuit and swim in the water to pick the seaweed on other days. After picking it, fishermen select and wash it by hand. After repeatedly washing and drying it in the sun seven times, it becomes dried agar which can be made into nutritious and delicious agar jelly. Each cup of agar jelly is the fruit of those hardworking fishermen!
Director-General Wen Lee of Agriculture Bureau indicated that agar is algae with the most economic value in the Northeast Coast in New Taipei City. In addition to having thick colloid, it is rich in dietary fiber and numerous vitamins required by human bodies including vitamin B1, B2, A and E and trace element iodine. Take agar jelly around the size of a pudding cup (approximately 150mL) for example, it only contains approximately 30 calories, so it is low-calorie, nutritious, filling, safe and healthy food. To protect agar, New Taipei City government forbids picking agar with any method in three fishery resources conservation areas in Wanli, Ruifang and Gongliao from October 1st to April 15th every year to make the resources of agar sustainable.