The EU Bioeconomy Strategy aims to support the sustainable growth and development of the EU bio-based sectors while creating jobs, innovation and services. Despite the recognized potential of the algae biomass value chain, significant knowledge gaps still exist regarding the dimension, capability, organization and structure of the algae production in Europe. This study presents and analyses the results of a comprehensive mapping and detailed characterization of the algae production at the European scale, encompassing macroalgae, microalgae, and the cyanobacteria Spirulina. This work mapped 447 algae and Spirulina production units spread between 23 countries, which represents an important addition to the reported number of algae producing countries. More than 50% of these companies produce microalgae and/or Spirulina. Macroalgae production is still depending on harvesting from wild stocks (68% of the macroalgae producing units) but macroalgae aquaculture (land-based and at sea) is developing in several countries in Europe currently representing 32% of the macroalgae production units. France, Ireland, and Spain are the top 3 countries in number of macroalgae production units while Germany, Spain, and Italy stand for the top 3 for microalgae. Spirulina producers are predominantly located in France, Italy, Germany, and Spain. Algae and Spirulina biomass is directed primarily for food and food-related applications including the extraction of high-value products for food supplements and nutraceuticals. Algae production in Europe remains limited by a series of technological, regulatory and market-related barriers. Yet, the results of this study emphasize that the European algae sector has a considerable potential for sustainable development as long as the acknowledged economic, social and environmental challenges are addressed.

Despite being a comparatively new branch of agriculture, algae production is often considered to be a solution to many food security-related problems, such as land scarcity, climate change, inefficient and unsustainable fertilizer usage, as well as associated nutrient leakage and water pollution. Algae can be cultivated independent of arable land and, especially in the case of many microalgae, produce oil- and/or protein-rich biomass with spatial efficiency which far exceeds that of terrestrial plants. Nevertheless, algae and algae-derived products are almost exclusively produced for high-value, low-volume markets and are far from being able to compete with cheap commodities such as plant-based proteins or fossil fuel. High investment and production costs are considered the main reason for this, but a lack of economic incentives for sustainable production and CO2 mitigation should not be overlooked. The development of new production technologies; the monetization of ecosystem services, such as water treatment, CO2 sequestration, and nutrient recycling; as well as the simultaneous production and marketing of “high-value, low-volume” and “low-value, high-volume” products from the same algal biomass are the most promising ways forward. A sustainable “algae industry” could be an integral part of the future bioeconomy, enabling more resource-efficient food and fuel production and creating new products, companies, and jobs.

This special issue presents the outcomes from “Designing sustainable and circular agricultural systems for the year 2100,” the joint scientific workshop of ISOFAR, the Thünen-Institute, and INRA-Morocco, which was held from November 14 to 16, 2019 in Marrakesh, Morocco. Nineteen scientists from a broad array of background and nationalities came together with the understanding that food security globally is at risk, especially in the post-2050 timeframe. Current concepts, strategies, measures, and scientific efforts carried out by governments, NGOs, businesses, and societies do not deliver satisfying solutions for how to sustainably produce enough healthy and affordable food to support the global population. With the economic and social impact of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, it became even more evident that food security is a challenge. This workshop took an innovative approach to addressing the challenges of future agriculture by considering sustainable, circular agricultural systems. Participants presented research results on algae-based food, edible insects, mushrooms, novel concepts for nutrient management, bioreactor-based farming, sustainable food culture, as well as sensor- and remote-controlled automatic food production. This special issue presents the papers contributed to the workshop and the results of the discussions.

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Steady state levels of the HSP70 transcript were followed by Northern hybridization in Moneuplotes crassus in order to investigate the mechanisms of the short term and long term response to heat shock in a spirotrichous ciliate. The influence of inhibitors of transcription or translation on the transcript levels was also studied. The heat shock response could be dissected into two phases. An initial protein-dependent stabilization of the mRNA was followed by an increase of the steady state transcript level that was dependent on continued transcription. As expected, the half-life of the RNA was short. Western blot analysis then showed that the HSP70 protein accumulated only upon permanent heat shock. It is concluded that the regulation of the heat shock response is a two-step process that occurs at the transcript level.