What is Astaxanthin? Astaxanthin is a red pigment occurring naturally in a wide variety of living organisms. Astaxanthin is a naturally occurring carotenoid that is closely related to beta-carotene and Lutein. Because of its unique structure, astaxanthin provides a wide range of antioxidant benefits. Astaxanthin may play a key role in the protection of cell membranes against free radical attack. Although the word astaxanthin may not be commonly encountered in everyday speech, the pigment itself is found in many human foods, and you are quite likely to be consuming it in your diet already. Shrimp, salmon, crawfish, crabs and lobster, are tinted red by accumulated astaxanthin. Recent studies have indicated that astaxanthin is more powerful than its carotenoid cousin, beta-carotene, at trapping singlet oxygen free radicals. Astaxanthin is one of a group of natural pigments known as carotenoids. Commercial production of astaxanthin from the microalga Haematococcus pluvialis for its high astaxanthin content. Some other commercial ventures for natural astaxanthin production utilize fermentation of the pink yeast Xanthophyllomyces dendrorhous or extraction of the pigment from by-products of crustacea such as the Antarctic krill (Euphausia superba).