Cyanotech Corp
Cyanotech Corp is a U.S.-based producer of microalgae-derived nutritional ingredients and finished supplements, built around Hawaiian Spirulina Pacifica and BioAstin Hawaiian Astaxanthin. The company grows, harvests, processes, and sells spirulina and astaxanthin in bulk form to ingredient customers and in packaged consumer form through its Nutrex Hawaii subsidiary. It also monetizes its extraction expertise through contract extraction services and, more recently, third-party R&D services. Cyanotech’s business is tied to its Kona, Hawaii production site, where climate, cultivation conditions, and production volume directly affect output, quality, and margins.
Fiscal year 2025 · change from previous year
Development 2020–2025
Business
Share of revenueHawaiian Spirulina Pacifica sold as powder or tablets to manufacturers and formulators.
BioAstin-related astaxanthin sales in bulk form for use in customer products.
Finished spirulina and astaxanthin products sold through retail, online, and distributor channels.
Supercritical CO2 extraction services provided to third-party biomass producers.
Microalgae-related R&D services offered to third parties using excess capacity and know-how.
Products
Reported · share of revenue- Packaged Astaxanthin54.3 %
- Packaged Spirulina21.6 %
- Bulk Astaxanthin10.7 %
- Bulk Spirulina9.9 %
- Contract Extraction and RD Services3.5 %
Source: 10-K FY2025, revenue the company reports per product line (SEC XBRL). Shares are of the lines shown and add up to 100 %.
Customers
Cyanotech sells bulk ingredients primarily to international health food manufacturers, formulators, and other producers that incorporate spirulina or astaxanthin into their own branded products. Its packaged consumer products are sold through natural product distributors, retailers, online channels, and direct-to-consumer channels, mainly under the Nutrex Hawaii brand. The company also serves third-party biomass producers that need extraction capacity, as well as customers seeking microalgae R&D support. Customer concentration is meaningful, with a small number of accounts accounting for a large share of annual sales, so procurement changes by major customers can materially affect revenue.
Buy spirulina and astaxanthin ingredients to incorporate into their own health and nutrition products, often because they value Hawaiian sourcing and product quality.
Purchase finished spirulina and astaxanthin products through retail, e-commerce, and direct channels for wellness and nutritional use.
Distribute Cyanotech-branded or customer-branded products in selected overseas markets where local channel partners are used.
Third-party biomass producers that outsource extraction to Cyanotech’s supercritical CO2 system.
Third parties seeking microalgae cultivation and processing expertise for development work.
Strategy
Cyanotech’s current strategy is to stabilize operations and improve cash generation while focusing on higher-margin consumer products and core ingredient lines. Management has been reducing production when demand is weak, keeping headcount and discretionary spending lower, and tightening sales and marketing execution, including strengthening eCommerce and retail capabilities. The company is also trying to improve product mix by emphasizing higher-quality spirulina and astaxanthin offerings that can support better margins. At the same time, it is using excess capacity to generate incremental revenue from contract extraction and R&D services, although those lines remain small and can be volatile.
The business has high fixed agricultural costs, so matching output to demand is essential to protect cash and margins.
Premium branded supplements can support better economics than commodity-like bulk sales.
Contract extraction and R&D services can generate incremental revenue from existing assets and know-how.
Geography
Cyanotech is headquartered and produces in Hawaii, with its core cultivation and processing operations centered at its Kona facility. The company also relies on third-party bottling and labeling contractors in California for packaged consumer products. Sales are global in nature: management disclosed that 21% of fiscal 2025 revenue and 18% of fiscal 2024 revenue came from outside the United States. Geography matters because the business depends on Hawaii’s climate and water conditions for algae cultivation, while international sales expose the company to foreign demand trends, local regulations, and distributor relationships.
Risks
Cyanotech faces meaningful customer concentration risk because a small number of customers account for a large share of sales, so changes in procurement or the loss of a major account could quickly reduce revenue. Its algae cultivation model is exposed to weather, disease, contamination, water availability, and climate-related disruptions, which can reduce yields and raise unit costs. The company also operates in a highly competitive dietary supplement and ingredient market, where larger rivals and lower-cost producers in China and India can pressure pricing and share. In addition, regulatory compliance, cybersecurity, inflation, and public health disruptions can all increase costs or interrupt operations, while weak production volumes can cause fixed overhead to be expensed rather than absorbed into inventory.
- Customer concentrationImpact: HighLikelihood: Medium
Two customers accounted for 31% and 10% of fiscal 2025 sales, so order changes by a few accounts can materially affect revenue and profitability.
Exposure: Top customers and top ten customer base
- Agricultural production variabilityImpact: HighLikelihood: Medium
Microalgae cultivation depends on weather, temperature, nutrients, water, and contamination control, making output and cost absorption volatile.
Exposure: Kona cultivation and harvesting operations
- Competitive pricing pressureImpact: MediumLikelihood: Medium
The company competes with larger supplement producers and spirulina farms in India and China that may have greater scale or lower costs.
Exposure: Bulk spirulina and dietary supplement markets
- Regulatory complianceImpact: MediumLikelihood: Medium
FDA, FTC, state health, agriculture, and environmental rules can increase costs and constrain operations or marketing claims.
Exposure: U.S. manufacturing and product sales
- Cybersecurity and IT disruptionImpact: MediumLikelihood: Medium
Order processing, billing, shipping, and customer support depend on information systems that could be disrupted by a breach.
Exposure: Enterprise systems and customer data
Accounting
Judgemental itemsReturns, coupons, trade promotions, and early payment discounts require estimates that can shift reported revenue period to period.
Impact: Net sales and gross margin
Low production volumes can leave fixed overhead unabsorbed and inventory must be written down if net realizable value falls.
Impact: Cost of sales, inventory balance, gross profit
Kona facility equipment and leasehold improvements depend on future cash flow assumptions and utilization levels.
Impact: Operating income and asset carrying values
Tax accounting depends on profitability, deferred tax assumptions, and realizability of tax assets.
Impact: Net income and effective tax rate
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Last updated: 24/09/2026