Spirulina as a Food of the Future

Spirulina is an edible, nontoxic, photoautotrophic, multicellular cyanobacterium (blue-green alga) with dynamic metabolic composition. Spirulina is rich in proteins (60–70%), carbohydrates (8–25%), lipids (6–20%), essential vitamins, minerals, essential fatty acids, chlorophylls, carotenoids, and phycobiliproteins. It is referred to as the “food for the future, superfood” owing to its higher protein content and the presence of other bioactive compounds. Due to its extraordinary metabolic composition and prolonged history as a food source, it is generally regarded as safe for human consumption. Spirulina is known for its antioxidant, anticancer, antidiabetic, and immune booster properties. Therefore, it has been extensively used as a human dietary supplement. It is widely used as a poultry and aquaculture feed additive because it increases the health profile of birds and fish. As Spirulina is the food of the future and has been used by NASA as a food supplement in space, its commercial market is continuously flourishing. The outdoor cultivation setup for Spirulina has multiple challenges including contamination, culture crash, quality assurance, and a slow harvesting process. A closed photobioreactor (PBR) and wetland-based cultivation system in outdoor setup could be developed to address some of these challenges. The focus of this chapter is to provide the detailed nutritional history of Spirulina and its usage as human food and animal feed additives, especially as an aquaculture feed and poultry feed. The potential health benefits and the impact on the growth of animals are discussed in detail. Moreover, this chapter also covers the challenges associated with the outdoor cultivation of Spirulina, its market value, and commercialized products.