Seeking natural antioxidants coming from microalgae to be applied in food

Nowadays the most important trend in food is clean labels. Companies all over the world are looking to clean up their label by substituting additives (synthetic compounds that must be labeled with E numbers in the foodstuff) for natural solutions that have at least the same functionality giving also more naturality to the food. Antioxidants, preservatives, colorings… are just some examples. Until now main focus have been taken on vegetable and spice extracts and oleoresins as substitutes for synthetic additives but not much attention has been paid to microalgae yet

Microalgae are microscopic algae, typically found in freshwater and marine systems, living in both the water column and sediment. They are unicellular species that exist individually or in chains or groups. The biodiversity of microalgae is enormous and they represent an almost untapped resource. It has been estimated that about 200,000-800,000 species in many different genera exist of which about 50,000 species are described. Over 15,000 novel compounds originating from algal biomass have been chemically determined. Most of these microalgae species produce unique products like carotenoids, antioxidants, fatty acids, enzymes, polymers, peptides, toxins, and sterols

Our company, a very well known European food multinational company in the field of food ingredients, present in all the five continents, is actively looking for academics, startups, companies that have experience working with natural antioxidants coming from microalgae that want to partner with us and advance together on its knowledge with the final goal of developing and launching into the market natural microalgae antioxidant to increase the shelf life of the foods and replace current synthetic antioxidants like ascorbic acid commonly used in the food industry.

Our company has a very good understanding, know-how, experience and all the technologies and equipment needed to extract compounds from most of the natural sources like vegetables, spices but also microalgae. If you have something new inmicroalgae and antioxidants, partnering with us will bring your technology and/or knowledge to the next level.

Requirements

Depending on the stage you are in, your solution or proposal should be compliant with the following requirements:

Price (cheaper or comparable to existing solutions like Rosemary extract) and/or better functionality (works better than existing solutions). Some market prices of alternate options below:

• Acerola extract (powder) USD 35/kg-NATURAL
• Ascorbic acid: USD 4.5/kg -SYNTHETIC

Other nice to meet requirements:

1. No E-number
2. Not many issues with the color. Ideally without color
3. Not many issues with the Taste and smell of Algae. Ideally no off notes
4. Easy to use, soluble in oil, does not modify the texture and taste of the food where it will be added

Possible solution areas

This request is addressed to academics, startups, and technology-based companies with expertise in Botanics, specifically in microalgae, and antioxidants