A controlled fermentation process
So how are the food ingredients made?
To produce a batch of AlgaVia whole algal (high lipid) flour or whole algal (lower lipid) protein powder, frozen microalgae is thawed and used to inoculate a flask containing a broth rich in simple sugars and other nutrients, which the microalgae convert into high value oils or protein-rich whole food ingredients.
The mixture is then transferred into progressively larger vats until the desired volume is reached.
Temperature, pH, agitation and aeration rates are controlled throughout the process, and when the batch is ready, the fermentation broth is harvested, concentrated, washed and/or disrupted, and then dried.
Both food ingredients are made from the same strain of microalgae, but subjected to different growing conditions, generating products with very different compositions.
Like any manufacturing process, Solazyme’s has become steadily more efficient through continuous improvement, says Rick Desai (pictured above), director of fermentation process development, who showed us around two pilot-sized fermenters (600 liters and 1,000 liters) at the San Francisco facility.
While these can be used to research new products, they have primarily been used to refine the process used to create the existing products in order to improve yield and productivity, says Desai, who says Solazyme is like a “software company using traditional hardware”, using “pretty standard off the peg kit” to produce “unique” products.