Scientists create healthy snacks from micro-algae 3D printing

In the food industry, 3D printing technologies are changing the way we produce and consume foods. They can help create analogues of meat products, recycle food waste, or customize the shape and properties of dishes for example. Most people being increasingly aware of the impact of their food consumption on their health, the environment, and society, new technological advancements are of great interest to find solutions to some of these issues.

If we look more closely at one of the applications of 3D printing in the food sector, we have the recent example of researchers from the Dutch University of Wageningen and Spanish University of Valencia that 3D printed a selection of micro-algae-based snacks. Here, the researchers were interested in creating innovative food products with potential health benefits by incorporating an ingredient not often found in snacks: micro-algae. The main benefit of additive technologies lie in the fact that it is possible to customize a food product easily compared to traditional methods, allowing more flexibility and personalization in the production process.

Image of the extruded snack | Image via Food and Bioprocess Technology journal.

It’s because of the strong green colour of the microalgal biomass that its incorporation is usually limited in food products, the scientists explained. Therefore, they explored how to incorporate the algae in foods in a subtle way by using 3D printing methods. Micro-algae actually offers tremendous benefits to the human body. The two species (Chlorella vulgaris and Arthrospira platensis) used in the study were freshwater, and produced proteins, minerals, vitamins, pigments, fatty acids, sterols and antioxidants, to complement a well-balanced diet.