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{{Language-box|english_link= Spirulina farming | french_link= Culture de la spiruline | spanish_link= Coming soon | hindi_link= Coming soon | malayalam_link= Coming soon | tamil_link= Coming soon | swahili_link=coming soon | korean_link= Coming soon | chinese_link=Coming soon | indonesian_link= Coming soon | japanese_link= Coming soon }}
[[Image:spirulina farming icon.png|right|80px]]
[[Image:spirulina_farm.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Spirulina farm in India.]]
[[Image:various_edible_forms.jpg|thumb|right|200px|Spirulina drink, energy bars, chikki, and pills.]]
'''Spirulina ''' is an aquatic micro-organism often referred to as an algae, though it more closely resembles bacteria. It is used as a food supplement to combat malnutrition. 1 gram of spirulina is said to be as nutritious as 100g of spinach or carrots, and is cheaper. It has an extremely high protein content, with 60-70% of its dry weight consisting of a balanced mix of various essential amino acids. Further it is very rich in beta carotene (to produce vitamin A), iron, vitamin B12, ganna-linolenic acid and other micronutrients. It has no cell wall and is therefore very easy to digest.
It improves physical growth as well as cognitive development. It also improves immunity, and therefore helps in fighting and preventing HIV/AIDS and anaemia. Studies show it is also effective against arsenic poisoning, a condition which is extremely hard to combat.
===Suitable Conditions===
Spirulina grows in solutions of specific minerals with the correct chemical balance and a pH of 8-11. There are various different recipes for this, depending on the budget available and the conditions. It needs a minimum of 20˚C to grow substantially, though a temperature of 35-37˚C is most effective. A good amount of sunlight is useful if the culture has a reasonable temperature and concentration. At very low temperature, low concentration of culture, or a culture that is struggling to grow.
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- Does not combat iodine or folic acid deficiency
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===Construction, operations and maintenance===
