Spirulina (Arthrospira) Production Under Nature and Nurture

Amha Belay

Earthrise Nutritionals LLCPO Box 270 Glendale CA 91204 USA

Online with Ecology of Cyanobacteria II Whitton BA (ed.) (2012) Springer, Dordrecht.Images copyright of author of articleabelay@earthrise.com

Spirulina in Nature

Highly alkaline water with pH up to 11; important for Spirulina (Arthrospira), but not so for other algae

Soluble NPK and trace elements from runoff and recycling

Shallow and mixed by wind Hot Arid areas of the

tropics and subtropics; marginal land unsuitable for conventional agriculture

Historical Aspects

The earliest photosynthetic organisms that made oxygenic life possible.

Cyanobacteria are the most conserved species with little evolutionary change.

Historical Aspects

Spirulina grew wild in the great soda lakes of Central Mexico and was prized by the ancient Aztecs. It was collected from surface water with fine-meshed nets and dried into cakes. The explorer, Cortes, noted in 1519 that it was traded as a commodity in the street markets like cheese. Spirulina continued to be harvested from L. Texcoco until about 5 years ago.

Historical Aspects

Lake Chad and surrounding lakes Bodou and Rombou in Africa have sustained dense populations of Spirulina algae for centuries. The local Kanembu people harvest Spirulina with baskets and sun dry them into cakes called dihe’.

Today, it is still collected and consumed as a main source of protein and is used in about 70% of their meals.

Spirulina

Contains one of the richest concentrations of nutrients known in any food, plant, grain or herb.

Among the highest protein contents of any living organism

Low in calories and fat; low in sodium. One of a few sources of GLA fatty acid High in bioavailable iron A real vegetarian food

A Storehouse of Nutrients –A Superfood

Spirulina Components of Benefit

A rich source of beta-carotene (Vitamin A) and zea-xanthin antioxidants

Chlorophyll for cleansing Unique blue pigment,

phycocyanin, with anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects

SOD for scavenging of oxygen radicals

Polysaccharides for cell protection, immune defense & prebiotic effects

A source of vitamin B12

important in red blood cell regeneration

Health promoting Phytonutrients

Spirulina as food

Green powdered mixes Smoothies Confectionery Food bars Baked desserts Pasta Crackers Breakfast cereals Frozen desserts Specialty beer!

Spirulina as a Dietary Supplement

Bottled powder Tablets Capsules Caplets

Spirulina health benefits

Spirulina Production in Nature

• In Lake Nakuru, Kenya, (1973/73) almost a million flamingoes on the lake consumed about 60 t (dry weight) of Spirulina a day

• The combination of consumption by grazers and algal respiration often nearly balances daily production and leads to a surprisingly constant cyanobacterial biomass density for months and even years

• Lake Arenguade, Ethiopia has the highest recorded areal primary productivity of any natural system

Depth

Temperature

Depth

Epilimnion

Metalimnion

HypolimnionLight

PS

Buoyancy regulation during stratification and nocturnal mixing may help reduce photoinhibition and nutrient limitation

Huge reserve of carbon in the form of carbonate/bicarbonate with good buffering capacityHigh photosynthetic activityVery high biomass densities resulting in self-shading and avoidance of photoinhibition during stratificationRecycling of nutrients aided by nocturnal cooling and mixingCO2 recycling by flamingos?Size exclusion of predation

Why So Productive?

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80

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1st Qtr 2nd Qtr 3rd Qtr 4th Qtr

East

West

North

NATURE PROVIDES

Light Sun Mixing Energy Wind Carbon (Alkalinity) Soda lakes Nutrients Recycling Algal Contamination Predation

Spirulina Mass Production: The Earthrise Way

Culturing Harvesting Drying Packaging Closed loop system with

almost complete recycling of materials

Spirulina in Mass Culture

Spirulina Production Spirulina Production Features and ProblemsFeatures and Problems

Light ClimateTemperature EffectsMixing and Recycling and associated ProblemsControl of Contamination & PredationHarvest Efficiency and associated Problems

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