Microalgae-based pigments

Recent trends in the food, pharmaceutical, and cosmeceutical industries include the transition toward sustainable processes, guided by a strong consumer preference for “natural” ingredients compared to those that are chemically synthesized. Within this scenario, microalgae could be an excellent source of natural pigments for these industries due to the naturally high photosynthetic capacity of these microorganisms, which are highly efficient at producing carotenoids, chlorophylls, and phycobiliproteins, among other compounds that display multiple biological benefits when used in food (nutraceuticals), pharmaceutical, and cosmetic applications. This chapter will provide an overview of the main pigments produced by microalgae, together with their main health benefits, use, and current market value of these compounds, also focusing on recent trends in algal biotechnology, including new cultivation strategies to improve the production of several pigments. The current state of the art, as well as advances in microalgal processing to achieve pigments, will also be discussed, addressing the recent research efforts to improve the sustainability of these processes by using multiple innovative technologies. The advantages and limitations of these innovative methods together with future prospects, bottlenecks, and needs for scale-up will also be discussed, aiming to provide a complete scenario to establish future research directions within this field.