As the global population grows and our food and resource requirements increase exponentially, great pressure is being put on the finite resources of the earth and its capacity to cope with the by-products of the current system of agriculture. These effects are exacerbated by the fact that more and more carbon-sequestering trees need to be cleared.

Current forms of agriculture have an extremely low aggregate efficiency in production, for example:

• The cultivation of microalgae is known to be the most profitable business in the biotechnological industry. It is a waste less, ecologically pure, energy and resource-saving process with a very high aggregate efficiency.
• The AIB system could also be used to remediate unusable land and deserts, as microalgae can be grown using seawater.
• Vertical farming provides all the greens we need from a smaller footprint than traditional agriculture. More land can be left to nature.

Why does the world need microalgae and vertical farming?

The major drivers behind climate change are:

1. Increased CO2 emissions
2. The clearing of trees and foliage which consume CO2
3.  The burning of fossil fuels for power and transport
4. The clearing of forests for agriculture
5.  Growing feed for livestock and landfill

Many daily eaten food items can be grown using vertical farming. Vertical Farming has many advantages including less usage of water, fertilizers and land, healthier and fresher food, less mileage travelled, no use of pesticides and herbicides and no land tillage.

Products From Microalgae

How microalgae and vertical farming can mitigate climate risks:

• Traditional forms of farming are weather-dependent and require vast tracts of land. Microalgae are much more productive than traditional agriculture and enable the production of carbohydrates, proteins and edible oil and other food ingredients in a diversity of geographies and seasons, tremendously improving supply chain integrity and resilience in the face of unstable climate conditions.
• The cultivation of microalgae is known to be the most profitable business in the biotechnological industry. It is a waste less, ecologically pure, energy and resource-saving process with a very high aggregate efficiency.
• The AIB system could also be used to remediate unusable land and deserts, as microalgae can be grown using seawater.
• Vertical farming provides all the greens we need from a smaller footprint than traditional agriculture. More land can be left to nature mitigating climate change.

Known consumer trends driving commercial demand for microalgae:

• The growth of health awareness, and the demand for low-fat, higher-nutrient foods.
• The growth of veganism, vegetarianism and reduction of meat consumption.
• Consumer concern for “clean” ingredients with low environmental impact.
• Growing population and unstable weather conditions in the developing world.
• Demand for new, environmentally friendly products. (With the additional species that will now be able to be farmed with the AIB system, innovation possibilities are endless).

• • The environmental need exists
  • Consumer demand is proven
  • The need for product innovation is known
  • Government need to meet agreed carbon reduction targets is there
  • Increased awareness of the product’s potential will increase demand

AIB considers itself a “for purpose” venture with a goal to improve health, solve food security problems and lower our carbon footprint by creating a movement to understand the benefits of microalgae and vertical farming. To this end, AIB has developed a number of concepts for commercialization and potential licensing of the technology is available.

Microalgae is full of potential, being rich in numerous health-beneficial compounds such as omega-3 long-chain polyunsaturated fatty acids (ω3-LC-PUFA). Enriching food products with microalgae is an interesting strategy for creating healthy foods rich in ω3-LC-PUFA, but several challenges still need to be solved.

In a search for more sustainable food systems, microalgae are considered one of the most auspicious sustainable sources of food ingredients. Photoautotrophic microalgae have a higher growth efficiency compared to conventional crops, do not need arable land, and substantially contribute to capturing atmospheric CO2. While heterotrophic microalgae use other carbon sources and do not therefore contribute to CO2 capture, they are often characterised by an even higher biomass productivity.

Adding microalgae to food products would be a great strategy to enrich our diet in many nutrients and health-beneficial components. Particular interest goes to omega-3 ω3-LC-PUFA, which are essential in the development and functioning of the brain, and successful in the prevention of cardiovascular diseases. Given the limited sources of ω3-LC-PUFA in our Western diet, being only (fatty) fish and derived products, most consumers do not reach the recommended daily intake of 250 mg/day. The most economic and sustainable strategy for introducing microalgae into our diet is the use of the whole microalgal biomass in food, instead of consuming isolated microalgal compounds. Yet this is not as easy as it sounds, there are several challenges to overcome in order to guarantee the overall quality of the enriched food products.

In principle, microalgae can be added to a broad range of food products, however, there are several reasons to opt for vegetable-based products as ideal carriers for microalgal enrichment. Firstly, they are essential components of a healthy diet, being rich in micronutrients and dietary fiber. Secondly, possible unfavourable effects due to the intense colour and flavour of the microalgae could be masked by a strategic selection of vegetables with a similar or dominant colour and flavour profile. But one of the major advantages is the presence of large amounts of natural antioxidants in vegetables, which could help to prevent ω3-LC-PUFA from oxidation.

Many vegetable-based products such as soups and sauces are subjected to different food processing operations. These include mechanical processes, like mixing and homogenising, but also thermal processes, such as pasteurisation and sterilisation treatments. With no previous knowledge on the impact of such processing steps on microalgae, we thoroughly studied the effect of food processing on microalgal food systems, hypothesising that they could give rise to an improved product quality.