October 2026
In Cyanoterra’s commercial experience, indicative prices for Chinese-origin spirulina have moved from around €4–6/kg to €8–10/kg. More significant than the price increase is the lack of available stock we are encountering in this supply market. [1]
This pressure coincides with the food industry’s move towards natural colours. Spirulina is a source of phycocyanin, the blue pigment recovered to make spirulina extracts. Its value as a raw material therefore extends beyond the market for whole green powder. [2][3]
Our assessment is that demand for phycocyanin is an important part of the explanation. When colour production draws on the same cultivation resources as whole-powder production, the effects can reach companies that use spirulina for nutrition rather than colour.
A shared raw material for nutrition and colour
Whole spirulina powder and blue spirulina extract are different ingredients. The first contains the biomass; the second is obtained by recovering its blue pigment. Extraction adds processing steps, and the amount of usable colour recovered depends on the raw material and the process. [2]
This creates a direct economic connection between the two markets. Where biomass is suitable for either use, producers have a choice over its destination. Increasing demand for blue extract can strengthen competition for that biomass, reducing the quantities available for whole-powder sales until production adjusts.
The commercial incentive depends on what can be recovered from a given quantity of biomass, the cost of extraction and the value of the resulting ingredients. A higher selling price for an extract does not, on its own, establish a higher return for the producer. But where extraction offers an attractive return, it can influence production planning and raw-material allocation.
The impact need not be uniform. Dedicated supply arrangements, product specifications and production models can leave one part of the market relatively well supplied while another struggles to obtain material. The relevant connection is the shared raw material, not an assumption that every grade of spirulina is interchangeable.
The expansion of natural food colours
On 22 April 2025, the US Food and Drug Administration and Department of Health and Human Services announced measures to move away from petroleum-based synthetic food dyes. The initiative combined regulatory action with industry participation and accelerated consideration of natural alternatives. [3]
Food manufacturers have since reported changes to established product ranges. In 2026, General Mills announced that it had completed the removal of certified colours from its US cereal portfolio, in line with its summer commitment. This is evidence of reformulation at commercial scale, although the announcement does not specify purchases of phycocyanin. [4]
Ingredient manufacturers are investing in response. In March 2026, Sensient announced the start of an expansion at its St Louis natural-colour plant and said it expected to spend up to USD 250 million over the coming years on manufacturing capacity, supply chains and personnel. The programme covers natural colours as a whole, rather than phycocyanin alone. [5]
These developments establish the broader demand context. Spirulina-derived blue is one of the ingredients available to serve that transition; how much demand it captures depends on the application, colour requirements and regulatory status.
The regulatory timetable also remains relevant. The FDA’s February 2026 order to expand the uses of spirulina extract was subsequently delayed, and the agency’s status page still records that delay. It concerns the expansion of uses, not a general prohibition on existing uses of the extract. [10][11]
The connection to Chinese production
China’s production network illustrates how the two ingredient markets are linked. An October 2025 report in Ordos Daily describes the Etuoke Banner cluster producing both spirulina powder and phycocyanin powder, with exports reaching Germany, France and the United States. [6]
For European companies sourcing Chinese-origin spirulina, demand for colour ingredients elsewhere can therefore be commercially relevant. Where production serves several markets, a change in one outlet can affect the material available to another. The regional report provides this supply-chain context; our current information on price and availability comes from Cyanoterra’s own commercial observations.
Those observations place indicative prices in the €8–10/kg range, compared with earlier indications around €4–5/kg. They describe the Chinese-origin supply we monitor, rather than a global price index covering all origins, certifications and specifications. [1]
Availability is the immediate constraint
In that supply market, the principal difficulty is obtaining available stock. The higher price range does not mean material is ready for immediate delivery. This is the most consequential part of the change we are observing. [1]
A higher ingredient price affects production cost. A lack of material also affects manufacturing schedules and the ability to maintain an established formulation. For an industrial customer, the commercial value of a supply arrangement therefore includes the quantity and specification that can actually be delivered, as well as the price.
Biomass supply and extraction capacity are separate constraints. An extraction bottleneck can restrict blue ingredient output without creating the same shortage in whole green powder. Competition for biomass, by contrast, can affect both. Our interpretation of the current market focuses on that shared supply, while recognising that the available evidence does not measure the proportion of the price increase attributable to extraction.
Production capacity and the outlook
The industry is responding with investment in cultivation as well as processing. In May 2025, Sun Chemical announced a new Earthrise cultivation facility in California, with monitoring and production-control systems, linked to the production of its LINABLUE spirulina extract. [8]
Process improvements are another possible source of additional supply. Research published in Communications Biology in 2025 investigated hydrodynamic cavitation to improve phycocyanin recovery. It offers a route for development, rather than evidence that additional commercial capacity is already available. [2]
For colour applications, the output also has to perform in the formulation. Experimental work published in the Journal of Applied Phycology found that the stability of tested phycocyanin preparations varied with temperature, pH, extraction method and formulation. Increasing biomass production is therefore only one part of supplying a usable colour ingredient. [7]
Alternative sources of blue may also absorb part of the demand. In July 2025, the FDA approved gardenia-derived genipin blue for specified food uses in the United States. Its permitted applications and technical performance have to be considered separately from those of spirulina extract. [9]
The outlook depends on how quickly additional, suitable production becomes available relative to demand. Investment announcements alone cannot establish when the supply pressure will ease or where prices will settle. For now, the situation Cyanoterra observes in Chinese-origin supply is a combination of higher indicative prices and a lack of immediately available stock. [1]
Frequently asked questions
Why has spirulina become so much more expensive?
Cyanoterra has observed higher indicative prices and a lack of available stock in the Chinese-origin supply it monitors. Our assessment is that demand for phycocyanin contributes to this pressure by increasing competition for suitable biomass, against the backdrop of the food industry’s transition to natural colours. The exact contribution to the price increase has not been quantified. [1][3][5]
Why is spirulina used to produce blue food colouring?
Is there a shortage of spirulina?
Yes. We expect supply shortages in the Chinese-origin spirulina market over the coming months. Production is seasonal, which limits how quickly available stocks can be replenished.
Cyanoterra operates at the source of the supply chain, with direct access to production. We have secured spirulina stock for October and November 2026. [1]
Will spirulina prices return to their previous levels?
Additional cultivation, improvements in extraction and alternative colour ingredients could ease the pressure. A return to earlier prices would depend on the balance between effective supply and demand, and on conditions in each product segment. The evidence does not support a date or a specific future price. [2][8][9]
For spirulina and spirulina extract enquiries, contact Cyanoterra to discuss your application and supply requirements.
Sources and references
Price and availability information is attributed to Cyanoterra. External references cover the market context, production and technical background. Sources checked on 17 October 2026.
- Commercial observations and supply update on Chinese-origin spirulina. Cyanoterra. October 2026. First-hand information supplied by company management, covering indicative price ranges, seasonal supply expectations and Cyanoterra’s secured stock for October and November 2026. Not a global price index or a quotation.
- Hydrodynamic cavitation mediated Spirulina valorisation with insights into phycocyanin extraction and biogas production. Chegukrishnamurthi et al., Communications Biology 8, 326. 27 February 2025.
- HHS, FDA to Phase Out Petroleum-Based Synthetic Dyes in Nation’s Food Supply. US Food and Drug Administration. 22 April 2025.
- General Mills Completes Removal of Certified Colors From U.S. Cereal Portfolio. General Mills, distributed by Business Wire. 2026; accessed 17 October 2026.
- Sensient Scales Up Natural Color Production to Fuel U.S. Shift from Synthetic Dyes. Sensient Food Colors, distributed by PR Newswire. 26 March 2026.
- Etuoke Banner: showing China’s spirulina industry to the world (title translated from Chinese). Ordos Daily, reproduced by the Ordos local history and archives website. 9 October 2025; reproduced 23 October 2025.
- Augmentation of the stability of phycocyanin from Arthrospira maxima (Spirulina) by the addition of food preservatives…. Tran et al., Journal of Applied Phycology 37, 1933-1949. 22 March 2025.
- New Edible Algae Cultivation Facility Introduces Sustainable Smart Farming to Sun Chemical’s Spirulina. Sun Chemical / DIC Group. 8 May 2025.
- FDA Approves Gardenia (Genipin) Blue Color Additive While Encouraging Faster Phase-Out of FD&C Red No. 3. US Food and Drug Administration. 14 July 2025.
- Color Additives. US Food and Drug Administration. Live status page; accessed 17 October 2026.
- Listing of Color Additive Exempt From Certification; Spirulina Extract; Delay of Effective Date. FDA / Federal Register, 91 FR 13966. 24 March 2026; delay effective as of 20 March 2026.
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