Blue spirulina

We hate to disappoint and spoiler alert, “Blue Spirulina” is not a real thing. “Blue Spirulina” is made of Phycocyanin which is an extract of spirulina.

The story with blue spirulina

Spirulina is also known as ‘blue-green algae’ and is cyanobacteria. This is clearly a non-toxic microalgae. Chlorophyll is the pigment you are familiar with that does photosynthesis and is also the one responsible for the deep green colour spirulina has.
There is another pigment within spirulina, its name is Phycocyanin, it is blue and is the one responsible to the bluish colour spirulina has. Phycocyanin, like chlorophyll, is a light-harvesting, it is pigment-protein complex from the phycobiliprotein family and is an accessory pigment to chlorophyll.

Couple definitions to make things clearer

The word ‘Phyco’ means “relating to seaweed/algae (Phycology is the scientific study of algae). The word Cyano, its meaning is “relating to the colour blue, especially dark blue”.

Hence ‘phyco’ + ‘cyano’ + phycobiliprotein family = Phycocyanin (a.k.a ‘Blue Spirulina’)

Make your own blue spirulina

Extracting the phycocyanin from spirulina is not hard (see the video below) once soluble in water it then turns to powder and sold as a powder.
But then we ask the question, so if you are having phycocyanin already why don’t you have spirulina? And if you are having spirulina why not fresh spirulina? Aye?

Phycocyanin extraction from spirulina – short video