Algae-Based Biorefineries for Animal Feed and Aquaculture Applications

There are innumerable species of microalgae and their approximate number is between 30,000 and 1,000,000. Algae species especially microalgae have distinctive metabolism, biomass diversity and their ability to tolerate different water environments makes them potential candidates for commercial applications. Microalgae are unicellular photosynthetic microorganisms with a broad spectrum of applications in numerous sectors. They are essential to primary production. They have high photosynthetic and metabolic capacities and can produce a variety of valuable metabolites, such as lipids, carbohydrates, pigments, and proteins. There are three different ways by which microalgae can be cultivated that are photoautotrophic, heterotrophic, and mixotrophic. The major mode by which they are cultivated mainly is photoautotrophic and they can generate energy directly from light, CO2, and water, typically through photosynthesis, producing organic compounds. Microalgae have a lot of potential for use in the feed business as a feed additive because of their high nutritional and functional value, which can improve animal performance. The usage of microalgae incorporation in the feeds of animals and aquaculture has beneficial effects like they produce naturally immunostimulant and antimicrobial compounds.