General info
Transforming microalgae into sustainable products for everyday life
Environmentally-friendly meat alternatives, beverages that support our health, natural pesticides and sustainable fish feed are all possible with one bio-resource: microalgae.
Microalgae are tiny organisms that grow using sunlight, water, CO₂, and nutrients. Some microalgae contain high levels of protein, while others are excellent lipid producers. They also produce vitamins, industrially-relevant carbohydrates, and compounds with antioxidant, antifungal, and prebiotic effects. Each strain has a unique mix of valuable compounds. We can stimulate them to increase the production of specific ingredients, making microalgae a versatile resource across many industries.
Yet costs for production and processing of algae remain high and use large amounts of energy and water. Valuable outputs are also discarded as waste. In the ALLIANCE project, we want to change this by developing new production and processing methods that make microalgae products more sustainable and affordable.
Why are our microalgae products sustainable
We develop new ways to grow microalgae that require less energy and fewer resources. We cover the remaining needs by reusing water and nutrients from other industries before using fresh resources. We also process the microalgae using more environmentally-friendly methods. Novel multi-product biorefineries can also turn one algae crop into multiple ingredients and products.
Together these innovations make production and processing of microalgae more efficient and reduce waste, costs and environmental impact. That’s why our microalgae products are more sustainable and affordable.