State Key Laboratory of Marine Resource Utilization in South China Sea Hainan University, 58 Renmin Avenue, Meilan District, Haikou, Hainan Province, 570228, PR China
Elia Lio
Institute of Chemical Sciences and Technologies (SCITEC) “Giulio Natta” Italian National Research Council (CNR), via Mario Bianco 9, 20131, Milan, Italy
Anna T. Germann
Synthetic Microbiology, Department of Biology, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
Andreas Nakielski
Synthetic Microbiology, Department of Biology, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany
David A. Russo
Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Institute for Inorganic and Analytical Chemistry, Bioorganic Analytics, Lessingstr. 8, D-07743, Jena, Germany
Ted Chavkin
Department of Chemical and Biological Engineering, University of Wisconsin-Madison, Madison, WI, USA
Department of Biotechnology and Biosciences, University of Milano-Bicocca, 20126, Milano, Italy
Paola Coccetti
Department of Biotechnology and Biosciences, University of Milano-Bicocca, 20126, Milano, Italy
Francesco Secundo
Institute of Chemical Sciences and Technologies (SCITEC) “Giulio Natta” Italian National Research Council (CNR), via Mario Bianco 9, 20131, Milan, Italy
Pengcheng Fu
State Key Laboratory of Marine Resource Utilization in South China Sea Hainan University, 58 Renmin Avenue, Meilan District, Haikou, Hainan Province, 570228, PR China
Synthetic Microbiology, Department of Biology, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany; Cluster of Excellence on Plant Sciences (CEPLAS), Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, D-40001, Düsseldorf, Germany; Corresponding author. Synthetic Microbiology, Department of Biology, Heinrich Heine University Düsseldorf, 40225, Düsseldorf, Germany.
Peter Lindblad
Microbial Chemistry, Department of Chemistry–Ångström, Uppsala University, Box 523, SE-75120, Uppsala, Sweden
The growing use of photosynthetic microorganisms for food and food-related applications is driving related biotechnology research forward. Increasing consumer acceptance, high sustainability, demand of eco-friendly sources for food, and considerable global economic concern are among the main factors to enhance the focus on the novel foods. In the cases of not toxic strains, photosynthetic microorganisms not only provide a source of sustainable nutrients but are also potentially healthy. Several published studies showed that microalgae are sources of accessible protein and fatty acids. More than 400 manuscripts were published per year in the last 4 years. Furthermore, industrial approaches utilizing these microorganisms are resulting in new jobs and services. This is in line with the global strategy for bioeconomy that aims to support sustainable development of bio-based sectors. Despite the recognized potential of the microalgal biomass value chain, significant knowledge gaps still exist especially regarding their optimized production and utilization. This review highlights the potential of microalgae and cyanobacteria for food and food-related applications as well as their market size. The chosen topics also include advanced production as mixed microbial communities, production of high-value biomolecules, photoproduction of terpenoid flavoring compounds, their utilization for sustainable agriculture, application as source of nutrients in space, and a comparison with heterotrophic microorganisms like yeast to better evaluate their advantages over existing nutrient sources. This comprehensive assessment should stimulate further interest in this highly relevant research topic.
