grow it eight years ago, and I've been obsessed with it," he said, standing in his greenhouse on a rainy September day. He gestured toward the two friends — Greg Soll and Aaron DellaCroce — he recruited for his endeavor and said, "Now these guys are obsessed with it, too." Miller's girlfriend, Jonna Jermyn, is also a partner in the business. He juggles the spirulina farm with his "day job" with Avaaz, a U.S.-based organization that assists people worldwide with social action and environmental initiatives.

In India, Miller wrote an English-language manual about how to grow spirulina. The method used at the rural commune was rudimentary and inexpensive, with the pool costing less than $100 to build. In a medium that consisted mostly of water, urine was used asair into the mixture, which aids in the bacteria's growth. The ideal water temperature for spirulina growth is 98 degrees, Miller said.

"In perfect conditions, spirulina will double in a day," he noted.

DellaCroce does most of the harvesting, a job he usually undertakes three days a week. The spirulina in its medium is pumped into a wooden frame that DellaCroce sets above the pool. The frame holds a fine-mesh fabric that strains the algae; the excess water drains back into the pool. Then DellaCroce uses a small, squeegee-like instrument to gather and further strain the substance, before squeezing the crop with his hands. He's left with a big ball of green glop. This live spirulina is then dumped into a five-gallon bucket. One pound of spirulina contains roughly 25