Microalgae specilaist Cyanotech has donated over 700 bottles of its Hawaiian Spirulina Protein Shake and personal protective equipment (PPE) to two Hawaii Island hospitals.
Cyanotech grows and produces Hawaiian Spirulina, a powerful superfood with immune boosting benefits and BioAstin Hawaiian Astaxanthin, a potent antioxidant supplement derived from natural microalgae grown on the Kona Coast of the Big Island of Hawaii.
"We are extremely grateful to our community front line workers and are pleased to be able to give back to them in any way we can," said Dr Gerry Cysewski, CEO of Cyanotech. "In wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, we hope that our donation to Kona Community and North Hawaii Community Hospitals will provide protection and nutritional support to these local heroes."
Cyanotech's Hawaiian Spirulina Protein Shake is plant-based and contains 16g of protein per serving, plus energy boosters rhodiola and panax ginseng. Spirulina has been shown in multiple human clinical studies to help support the immune and cardiovascular system and provides numerous healthful antioxidants.
In addition to the protein shakes, Cyanotech has donated 45 boxes of gloves, two boxes of Tyvek suits, and one box of respirator cleaning wipes to the Kona Community Hospital.
"Our commitment to better health and well-being extends out to our community. While we hope to continue to support our local hospitals with more donations in the future, we chose to donate the personal protective equipment to Kona Community Hospital, as this part of our island is anticipated to report the most COVID-19 cases," added Cysewski.
Internally, Cyanotech has taken many steps to keep their employees safe during the COVID-19 pandemic. As a manufacturer of dietary supplements, Cyanotech already had Disease Control & Cleanliness Policies in place - these policies are being highlighted and heightened.
Additional sanitising steps have been taken company wide. Employee health and well-being is a top priority for the company so any employee that may be affected by the virus is required to stay home until their health care provider deems them well. Affected employees will receive full pay without deduction of paid time off for the time they are recovering at home.