Spirulina Farming / Cultivation Business – Spirulina is a form of cyanobacterium that thrives in both fresh and saline water and is generally known as blue-green algae. Like plants, it produces energy from sunlight through the process of photosynthesis. It grows and grows in warm water alkaline ponds and rivers. Protein is one of the important components in the diet. It is one of the best possible sources of protein.
Spirulina protein is grown commercially in large scale culture systems for human and animal consumption. Spirulina has a protein content of 40 to 80% and has a very high growth rate. It grows with less water and land, and it can flourish in any tropical environment. Spirulina in wet or dry form is used as a dietary supplement in commercial aquacultures such as fish, shrimp, and livestock.
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Market Opportunity for Spirulina
The scientific name of domestic spirulina is known as Crocus sativus from the family Iridaceae. The global spirulina market is expected to register a CAGR of 10% during the forecast period and is estimated to be valued at nearly $ 2,000 Million by 2026, from more than $ 700 Million in 2016 growing to factors such as increased application of spirulina in cosmetics.
Further, One teaspoon of spirulina contains in 4 grams of protein, vitamin B1, B2, B3, copper, iron, omega 6 and omega 3 fatty acids, manganese, potassium and magnesium. Moreover, the some government regulations have banned the usage of synthetic food colours in the food industry, which is expected to boost the sales of spirulina based natural food colours in the region during the forecast period. As a result, starting a Spirulina Farming Business is quite beneficial to you.
Get Training for Spirulina Farming
Firstly, It is most important to take spirulina farming training. In today, There are various programmes out in the market that provide spirulina cultivation training to many people. Skill training in the field is critical to avoid making costly mistakes that could jeopardise the entire harvest, thus the training approach is precise and takes little time to master. Once you have obtained the certification and the training you can either be your own boss and start cultivating in your own home or you can manage someone else’s cultivation. Therefore, with training, practical experience is also essential for spirulina farming
Investment for the Spirulina Farming
The cost of Spirulina Farming depends on the cost of raw materials, place, local labour, packaging and logistics and are dependent on the local market. It may vary from place to place. The Spirulina cultivation is a low investment and high-income farming. Those who have been in the business for a while know the economic benefits of it. The investment of spirulina farming is minimal, and the profits that may be made are substantial. Finding clients for the food is also simple, given the limited supply in the market and the fact that it can be sold for roughly Rs 1000 per kg.
Required Place for Spirulina Farming
Talking about the right places for grow commercially grown spirulina. This spirulina can be grown in any enclosed position as water is available place. And also, this spirulina can be grown in any water source with blue-green algae, but you need to grow it in sealed containers to create pollution-free spirulina. The optimum temperature for the cultivation of this spirulina is 30 to 35 Celsius. All you need for this is good sunlight. In concrete pots, plastic pots in round or square pools, you can produce or grow spirulina. Also, you do not need much space to start a small scale production and can start in your home.
Required License For the Spirulina Farming
First, you need to apply for FSSAI registration, because Spirulina farm is a food-related business. Then Obtain a trade license And GST number, it is mandatory for any type of business, apply for MSME Udyog Aadhar online registration for your Spirulina agribusiness business, it is better to get ‘N.O.C’ from your State Pollution Control Board, apply for PIS certification for ISI mark and standards, get VAT registration Also get information on whether it is needed or not. Finally, you need to protect your brand name by trademark registration.
Required Materials for Spirulina Farming
Spirulina is grown in large water tanks that are made of cement or plastic. Though it can be of any large size, the standard practice uses a tank of 10 × 5 × 1.5 feet. A pump is also required to draw water and pump in water to the tank. It should be efficiently able to pump of water as that’s the amount required which will be filled up to a height of 2 to 3 feet in the tank.
Aside from this, you’ll need thermometers, pH sensors, air compressors, and other tools to monitor various growing conditions. There is also a list of chemicals like urea, sodium chloride, sodium bicarbonate, sulphates of magnesium, potassium and ferrous, and phosphoric acid which is required for creating a suitable culture medium.
Cultivation Process of spirulina
Now that you’ve seen everything you’ll need to get started with Spirulina farming, we’ll show you how to get started. First and foremost, you must choose a suitable tank for this Spirulina cultivation, which can be made of cement or plastic. You have to procure the mother’s spelling of mother cultivators and shift it to the water tanks. We need also use fertilisers and the suitable mixture in addition to mother culture.
We must ensure that the spirulina container receives adequate sunlight. With proper Sunshine, Spirulina will take a minimum of 10 to 15 days to develop It will take a few more days to develop during the colder winter season. I have to agitate the water with agitators every now and again during this process, along with the stick. During the process, be sure there is no contamination. This is how you should begin growing Spirulina in cement or plastic water tanks.
Preparation of Spirulina Powder
After cultivation, Collected spirulina is well washed. After cleaning, the water content is removed by pressing or squeezing and is ready to dry. Spirulina, when dried, will last for several months and may also preserve nutrients. The spirulina is placed inside a press grater and pressed into thin strands on a long clean towel in the sun to dry quickly. It helps in quick drying.
The Spirulina is now ready for grinding. Grinding machines can be used for the grinding of dried algae to make it like a flour. Spirulina is grounded and made into a soft powder, which is then packaged with various weights and sealed for marketing. Vacuum dried and airtight packing will preserve nutritional properties for three to four years.
Profits in the Spirulina Farming
Usually, the size of a pond is 10 × 20 feet. And assuming there are about 20 such pools. Each pond will produce an average of 2 kg of wet culture per day. The farmer should understand this equation, one kg of wet culture will give only 100 g of dry powder.
According to this, 20 tank spirulina agribusinesses produce 4 to 5 kg of dry spirulina powder each day on average. Production of spirulina in a month ranges from 100 to 130 kg per month. The market price of dried spirulina powder is around Rs. 600 to 1000 kg. A farmer can earn about Rs 40 to 55,000 per month.
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