Companies producing omega-3s from seafood inputs like krill oil are having a great year thanks to increased demand for health products, according to an industry insider.
Omega-3 specialist firms had a “wonderful” first quarter as consumers seeking a health boost turn to fish-based medicinal products and vitamins processed from raw material like fish oil, said Dmitri Sclabos, managing director of Chile-based krill producer and consultancy Tharos.
He sees the trend boosting companies like BASF-owned Pronova brand, DSM, Ocean Nutrition, AlaskaOmega, Pharma Marine, and Golden Omega. Demand in China is also a key feature of the market, Sclabos said.
“More and more people look on food and nutraceuticals as a way to sustain a healthy immune system. Aker Biomarine recently got approval to sell their krill oil in China, [which is] a major breakthrough,” Sclabos said. “They all rely on a handful of ingredients suppliers (fish oil) from Peru, Chile, Alaska, Norway, etcetera. At the base of the pyramid come a very large number of over-the-counter brands that sell at retailers like Walgreens, CVS, Costco, and Walmart.”
Producers have traditionally marketed krill oil products as an aid for reducing cholesterol level, blood pressure, and the risk of coronary heart disease.
Key krill oil players include Aker and Rimfrost, which subcontracted its production in 2016. Demand for krill oil is growing the most in South Korea and China, according to Sclabos.
Sclabos estimates Chinese ultimate demand for krill is up to 4.5 times current global krill oil and four times current krill meal production. In that context, Sclabos explained, the stage is set for major competition between Aker and Chinese companies, which have made a huge push recently to renovate their fleets and improve their production methods.
China is a member of the Commission for the Conservation of Antarctic Marine Living Resources (CCAMLR) – alongside Chile and 23 other nations – the body which manages krill stocks. Its push to increase its exploitation of Antarctic krill may lead it to lean on CCAMLR to changes its regulatory processes concerning the fishery, Sclabos told SeafoodSource last year.
Photo courtesy of Africa Studio/Shutterstock
