Is Microalgae the Food of the Future?

Microalgae has recently attracted considerable interest worldwide, due to its extensive application potential in a number of fields, including renewable energy, and the biopharmaceutical and nutraceutical industries. But it’s also a food ingredient that is brimming with potential, and here we explain why.

What is Microalgae?

Microalgae are defined as aquatic unicellular microorganisms that can be found both in freshwater and marine systems. They are photosynthetic micro-organisms capable of producing food from inorganic substances. More simply put, they’re microscopic aquatic organisms that are packed with nutrients! They provide organic compounds with high nutritional value and oxygen to support the rest of life on our planet. But what’s more interesting is that microalgae have the potential to become one of pillars which can feed all humanity in the future.

Can you eat it?

Yes, you can! Microalgae are very small organisms that look like tiny pills and their taste is most comparable to grass.

Why Should You Eat It?

With the increasing impact of climate change, we need to innovate when it comes to the planet’s growing population and the burdensome nature of food production. The United Nations predicts that by 2050 the planet will have 9.8 billion inhabitants, and a huge amount of protein will have to be made available to sustain this new population — 50% more than today in fact. 

One potential solution to bridge this “protein gap” is to cultivate microalgae. They are easy to grow and have several advantages over animal and plant proteins.  Algae can also be grown in wastewaters, so its production has very little environmental impact. It can also be grown all year-round, which means microalgae produce more biomass on a given area of land per year, than plants or animals. Microalgae is also incredibly healthy. It not only contains an incredibly high proportion of proteins, but they are also brimming with polyunsaturated fatty acids, beta-carotene and numerous vitamins.

The production of microalgae doesn’t require fresh water and its farms can, in theory, be built anywhere. Interestingly, according to the European Algae Biomass Association, there are more than 2,000 companies worldwide who are actively developing the production of microalgae. And New Food Magazine recently listed it as a “Food of the Future”. 

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