1. Historical background

Spirulina is a primitive species whose origins date back 3.5 billion years, a cyanobacterium that shares with plants the ability to photosynthesize. Using minerals in the water and light captured by its chlorophyll, it transforms CO ₂ into organic compounds and releases O ₂ . This makes spirulina one of the oldest forms of life to have appeared on earth.

In the 9th century, the Kanembous, a tribe living on the shores of Lake Chad in Africa, recognized the benefits of spirulina and used it to supply the local population. Spirulina was dried in the sand in the form of patties known as "dihé". Later, in the 14th century, Spanish invaders discovered that the Aztecs living in the valley of Mexico collected a kind of green mud which they dried in the sun and then consumed in the...