Questions & Answers

The term ‘algae’ describes a highly diverse group of water plants, both marine and freshwater, which differ in size, the way they grow and their appearance in shape and colour. 

Algae include seaweeds, or macroalgae, that are made up of multiple cells and microalgae, which consist of microscopic single cells. In addition,  green microalgae and land plants share a common ancestor providing a great background for new and exciting vegan and plant-based ingredients.

Chlorella is a group of green microalgae species that shares a common ancestor with all land plants including the crops we grow from which we obtain a lot of food and nutrition. Chlorella has been safely consumed globally for decades and since before 1997 in Europe, which brings advantages with respect to regulatory approval. It has a history of safe use as a food ingredient and supplement. Chlorella is a freshwater microalgae that is flexible with regard to its growth and can be grown to high density by fermentation.

Microalgae are a potential source of high-quality plant-based protein, which can be used in plant-based products to replace animal protein. These products will be attractive to all kinds of consumers. Microalgae are a good source of  essential macronutrients and micronutrients, including antioxidants and minerals such as iron with many also being a good source of fibre. Microalgae also contain vitamins and essential amino acids. Our bodies cannot produce these critical nutrients, therefore, it’s important we obtain them from our diet.

Microalgae provide huge potential for the sustainable sourcing of food ingredients such as proteins and other macronutrients and  micronutrients. Chlorella grows very fast when cultivated under controlled conditions in closed fermentation vessels. The use of these so-called fermentation systems allows for sustainable, safe, efficient, and reproducible production at large scale. In addition, these fermentation production systems also facilitate the efficient use of resources such as energy, fertilisers, and water. Harvests are not limited by season and, after the fermentation, the product is gently dried and provided as a whole-cell ingredient.

Chlorella accumulates large amounts of high-quality proteins that are rich in essential amino acids. Like vitamins, essential amino acids are important building blocks that are needed for good health. The body cannot produce these on its own, making it essential to obtain them from the diet. In addition, Chlorella is a good source of essential macronutrients, and micronutrients such as antioxidants, vitamins, including Vitamin B12, and minerals like manganese and zinc as well as being rich in fibre while being low in sugar.

Not all Chlorella sold on the market today, however, is produced to the same quality and transparency standards that we adhere to. We take this incredibly seriously.

We are also excited to be able to bring our innovation to other aspects of Chlorella to improve the nutritional benefits further still. 

All of our improvement approaches are non-GM.

At present, green microalgae have very limited applications as ingredients in food and beverage products – owing to their undesirable colour, taste and smell.

Due to its high chlorophyll content (10 to 20x the level found in spinach, for instance), the typical (dark green) form of Chlorella has limited applications as food and beverage ingredients – owing to the undesirable dark green colour, bitter taste and strong smell.

This led us to develop stable varieties of Chlorella with almost no chlorophyll to improve taste and appearance of the ingredient. In crop plants, varieties like these would be called cultivars. They are stable and breed true each time they are grown. This is essentially what Algenuity’s Chlorella  platform is about. The result is a range of Chlorella variants with different colours that are neutral in taste. These variants have the potential to unlock a wealth of opportunities in algae-based food and beverage applications.

The uptake of plant-based ingredients within food and beverage as part of a flexitarian diet or even a vegan or vegetarian diet is supported by products that have a desirable appearance flavour and smell. Consumers use a combination of multiple senses to enjoy food and make decisions over what they want to eat or feed their families.

Our range of Chlorella-based microalgae ingredients allows a wider application of these ingredients and potentially higher incorporation rate in foods than has traditionally been possible for microalgae. The taste and smell of the final food product will not be affected negatively as the microalgae-based ingredients will provide a neutral or pleasant taste and smell.

The original microalgae from which all our Chlorella variants have been derived was sourced by Algenuity from freshwater (sometimes referred to as sweet water) in Bedfordshire, UK in March, 2012. It was identified unequivocally as the species Chlorella vulgaris based on a full genome sequence.

No – we have used established plant-breeding methods to develop all of our Chlorella variants.

Our Chlorella variants are no-longer photosynthetic but grow very well in closed fermentation vessels using simple carbon-based feedstock such as glucose. We are producing our biomass at more than one site globally now including the UK but always under food grade manufacturing conditions; the  production process could be applied globally in a distributed basis and supports supply chain resilience.

The name Chlorella vulgaris is the scientific name for one of the primary species of microalgae that we produce. All living organisms have a scientific name that is almost always (with the exception of some dinosaurs) two-part with a genus (the first word that is always capitalised) and a species (second word) name. Chlorella actually means small (ella) and green (chloros) and vulgaris means common or common-place. So, taken together, Chlorella vulgaris means, small, green and common. In fact, many garden ponds or waterways will contain a mix of microalgae with Chlorella vulgaris being one of the many species that could be encountered. Chlorella are naturally occurring microalgae that are at the base of the food web within ecosystems.

Traditionally, Chlorella as found growing in nature, will be green, owing to the green pigment, called chlorophyll, that the cells produce. 

Chlorella has 10 to 20 times the level of chlorophyll as compared to another chlorophyll-rich plant that we eat, spinach. It's the very heavy chlorophyll content that gives a  bad taste that has been variably described as a gag-factor, with green Chlorella when wet described as a "nauseating slime".

The Algenuity process is a non-GM crop improvement process that has carefully selected highly nutritious Chlorella cultivars that no longer make chlorophyll - they no longer grow outdoors using sunlight and the poor taste is gone, replaced with a neutral flavour while all the nutrition remains.