14 The Bioeconomy of Production of Microalgal Pigments
329
14.2.3 Food Industry
More than a century, microalgae are utilized as a food source among humans due
to their exclusive nutrient content. The microalgae was proposed as an alternate
source to meet the global demand of proteins in the 1950s, which leads to the first
large quantity Chlorella export in 1960s and used them as protein-rich food among
humans. The developments in the downstream process leads to the establishment
of microalgal production facility units in countries including the US, India, Israel,
Australia, and several countries in Asia (Enzing et al. 2014). Lately, microalgae
serves as a sustainable source of food that can yield nutrients such as fatty acids,
polysaccharides, sterols and polyhydroxyalkonates along with common nutrients
required for growth in humans (Vigani et al. 2015). Microalgae has potential to yield
a large quantity of lipids and proteins along with a portion of carbohydrates. Both
these microalgae produced biomolecules, either in their raw or decontaminated form
serves as a food source and has a wide market throughout the world. Commercially
grown microalgae are used to extract lipid and proteins as food, as an alternate to their
plant counterparts, to maintain sustainability and reduce deforestation (VanthoorKoopmans et al. 2013). In recent times, Spirulina and Chlorella are extensively used
as a source of nutritional food, not only for man, but also for fishes in aquarium,
pets including dogs, cats, certain birds, horses, cows, and in poultry. In addition,
microalgal species, including Pavlova, Chaetoceros, Skeletonema, Tetraselmis and
Nannochloropsis are used as feed in aquaculture of fishes. Moreover, microalgae are
gaining acceptance among public as a raw nutritional diet, compared to other food
sources. Thus, they are marketed as individual food product as Chlorella noodles or
their extracts are mixed with other food products to improve their nutritional value
(García et al. 2017). The low maintenance, low energy usage for growth, and high
nutritional value compounds are the significant factors to use microalgae in most of
the food industries to improve their economy and profit.
14.2.4 Medicine and Nutraceuticals
Literatures of eighteenth-century revealed that the presence of microalgae in the
drinking water causes undesirable tastes and odor. Later, the reason was found to
be the release of metabolites such as trans-2-cis-6-nonadienal from algal blooms
in drinking water. Mostly, microalgae are considered as harmful microbes that
can lead to diseases until the twentieth century. The use of microalgae such as
Arthrospira and Nostoc for medicinal purposes has been started in the twentieth
century. In China, Nostoc commune and Nostoc flagelliforme are reported to be the
only edible species in their traditional medicine literatures. The herbal values of
Nostoc have been still utilized by several traditional and folklore medicinal practices for disease treatments in countries such as Mongolia, Fiji, Japan, Philippines,
Mexico, and Siberia (Borowitzka 2018). After twentieth century, microalgae such
329
14.2.3 Food Industry
More than a century, microalgae are utilized as a food source among humans due
to their exclusive nutrient content. The microalgae was proposed as an alternate
source to meet the global demand of proteins in the 1950s, which leads to the first
large quantity Chlorella export in 1960s and used them as protein-rich food among
humans. The developments in the downstream process leads to the establishment
of microalgal production facility units in countries including the US, India, Israel,
Australia, and several countries in Asia (Enzing et al. 2014). Lately, microalgae
serves as a sustainable source of food that can yield nutrients such as fatty acids,
polysaccharides, sterols and polyhydroxyalkonates along with common nutrients
required for growth in humans (Vigani et al. 2015). Microalgae has potential to yield
a large quantity of lipids and proteins along with a portion of carbohydrates. Both
these microalgae produced biomolecules, either in their raw or decontaminated form
serves as a food source and has a wide market throughout the world. Commercially
grown microalgae are used to extract lipid and proteins as food, as an alternate to their
plant counterparts, to maintain sustainability and reduce deforestation (VanthoorKoopmans et al. 2013). In recent times, Spirulina and Chlorella are extensively used
as a source of nutritional food, not only for man, but also for fishes in aquarium,
pets including dogs, cats, certain birds, horses, cows, and in poultry. In addition,
microalgal species, including Pavlova, Chaetoceros, Skeletonema, Tetraselmis and
Nannochloropsis are used as feed in aquaculture of fishes. Moreover, microalgae are
gaining acceptance among public as a raw nutritional diet, compared to other food
sources. Thus, they are marketed as individual food product as Chlorella noodles or
their extracts are mixed with other food products to improve their nutritional value
(García et al. 2017). The low maintenance, low energy usage for growth, and high
nutritional value compounds are the significant factors to use microalgae in most of
the food industries to improve their economy and profit.
14.2.4 Medicine and Nutraceuticals
Literatures of eighteenth-century revealed that the presence of microalgae in the
drinking water causes undesirable tastes and odor. Later, the reason was found to
be the release of metabolites such as trans-2-cis-6-nonadienal from algal blooms
in drinking water. Mostly, microalgae are considered as harmful microbes that
can lead to diseases until the twentieth century. The use of microalgae such as
Arthrospira and Nostoc for medicinal purposes has been started in the twentieth
century. In China, Nostoc commune and Nostoc flagelliforme are reported to be the
only edible species in their traditional medicine literatures. The herbal values of
Nostoc have been still utilized by several traditional and folklore medicinal practices for disease treatments in countries such as Mongolia, Fiji, Japan, Philippines,
Mexico, and Siberia (Borowitzka 2018). After twentieth century, microalgae such