SCHOTT, Algatechnologies Join R&D Forces

MITTERTEICH, Germany; KIBBUTZ KETURA, Israel—SCHOTT AG and Algatechnologies Ltd. signed an R&D agreement to strengthen their partnership after a successful one-year study at Algatech’s algae production facility.

SCHOTT‘s thin-walled DURAN® glass tubes achieved a 10-percent boost in algae cultivation efficiency, improving yields of Algatech’s signature natural astaxanthin product, AstaPure®. Nikolaos Katsikis of SCHOTT and Raz Rashelbach of Algatech will present the study results at the Algae Biomass Summit in San Diego on September 29 to October 2.

“The partnership with SCHOTT is an additional step toward achieving our objectives of optimizing production efficiency, and widens our capabilities in the development of new microalgae-based products." said Hagai Stadler, CEO of Algatech. “We strive to develop innovative algae solutions through partnerships with expert companies such as SCHOTT, one of the world leading glass manufacturers, which have longstanding experience in glass and containers for pharmaceutical industry. This case study was an additional step in developing the highest purity AstaPure® astaxanthin plus other innovative algae based ingredients."

“The success of thin-walled DURAN® tubing helped increase algae production efficiency on a small scale, and now will be replicated on a larger scale," said Raz Rashelbach, R&D manager at Algatech." “This is to support our strategy to double astaxanthin production capacity. The increase in sun exposure through the use of DURAN® tubing helps produce the purest AstaPure® astaxanthin available in the market today."

SCHOTT and Algatech’s R&D agreement will expand their joint cooperation to optimize Algatech’s production and optimize tubing design for the algae production industry on the whole. A dedicated section of Algatech’s factory in the Arava Desert will serve as a beta site for advanced glass components developed by SCHOTT for implementation in PBRs (photo bioreactors).