Algae are a megatrend
Our vision
Today’s highly developed world is reaching its limits. On the one hand, the limit of food security. In order to ensure food, more and more fertilizers and unfortunately also pesticides are used, which damages nature and especially biodiversity. On the other hand, we are reaching the limits of climate stability, as we emit three to five times as much CO2 as our world can process. This leads to the well-known climate consequences.
Because algae are both edible and have valuable and healthy ingredients, but also because algae contain fats and can thus be used as the basis of renewable energies, they are an indispensable raw material for the future. Step by step, algae are becoming a global megatrend.
For algae to live up to their role as a solution and become a megatrend, their cultivation and processing must become suitable for mass consumption, i.e. cheaper. Algae are currently a luxury good and reserved for only a few people; in the future, algae will become a commodity. Just as ships are loaded with wheat today, in the future container ships will be loaded with algae protein and tankers with algae oil. We are still a long way from this vision; global algae production today would probably fit on a single ship.
The Viride approach
At Viride, we are convinced that it is possible to develop algae into a commodity product. That means radically reducing their production costs, making them available to everyone as food and to all industries as a sustainable feedstock. In doing so, algae should substitute fossil carbon sources and complement sustainable food sources. This is because algae do not compete for traditional agricultural land: Their cultivation on mostly desertified soils or on the open sea does not compete with traditional agriculture.
Viride makes a difference. We founded Viride to take action in a world that needs to make every impulse for greater ecology sustainable.
Our mission is therefore
- Capture CO2 without planting trees
- Produce Omega-3 without killing fish
- Grow biomass where nothing else grows
- Apply high-tech while remaining pragmatic & sustainable
We are convinced that algae technology will accelerate changes towards more sustainability in many industries. As a startup founded in 2021, we are looking for partners, because we are convinced of cooperative project approaches.
Let’s make a difference together! Let’s capture CO2, let’s grow algae and use their high-quality ingredients. Let’s think in circular economies and work together.
facts about algae
species of algae
%
of oxygen produced by algae
cell in most algae
Properties of algae
Diversity
Not only is the range of algae species huge, but their properties are also extremely diverse. This diversity enables a wide variety of applications. Depending on the species and cultivation conditions, algae can have the following compositions:
Proteins
Up to 70% proteins with all essential amino acids
Lipids
Up to 75% lipids and therefore the perfect substitute for fish oil or diesel
Omega-3 fatty acids
Algae are the original source of all DHA and EPA fatty acids
Pigments
Chlorophyll, carotenes such as beta-carotene and astaxanthin, xanthophylls, and biliproteins
Vitamins and trace elements
High levels of almost all vitamins as well as elements like calcium, magnesium, iron and zinc.
Nutraceuticals
Antibacterial, antiviral, antioxidant
How to produce algae
Cultivation
Algae can be cultivated extremely efficiently. We use large, open ponds for this purpose. The advantages compared to cultivating land plants (agriculture!) are enormous.
