Aker Seafoods on Thursday announced that it sold all of its shares of Spanish company Pesquera Ancora to UK Fisheries Ltd. The sale is expected to earn Aker NOK 20 to 25 million.
Pesquera owns cod quotas in the Barents Sea and off the coast of Canada, harvesting 3,300 metric tons of fish in 2010. The company had 2009 revenues of EUR 3.8 million.
“In our opinion, there were not significant synergies between Pesquera Ancora and the rest of the Aker Seafoods group, and the strategic rationale for ownership of Pesquera Ancora was not present. We consider that cash released from the sale increases flexibility to develop Aker Seafoods core business. The sale price is satisfactory and demonstrates that quotas to harvest whitefish has significant value,” said Aker CEO Thomas Farstad.
AgriMarine begins raising salmon in China
AgriMarine Holdings on Thursday announced that it has stocked chinook salmon fingerlings at its Benxi, China, facility, marking the first time that the species will be grown in a closed-containment system in China.
In addition to the 300,000 chinook fingerlings that are being prepared, the newly installed hatchery system will accommodate a wave of 5000,000 Canadian-sourced chinook ova as well as 400,000 coho ova.
“We are pursuing high-value and niche-market product opportunities with our new focus on chinook and coho salmon,” said AgriMarine CEO Richard Buchanan. “The new ova represents 4,000 metric tons of product once the salmon are fully grown a year from now.”
Yum updates corporate social responsibility report
As part of its 2010 corporate social responsibility report released on Thursday, Yum Brands — the world’s largest restaurant company, with more than 37,000 restaurants in about 110 countries — said that 100 percent of its whitefish and shrimp originates from fisheries or processing plants that have been certified by an independent, third-party entity.
Currently, the Louisville, Ky., company’s quick-service seafood brand, Long John Silver’s, sources its whitefish from the eastern Bering Sea pollock fishery and its shrimp from farms and processing plants in China, Thailand and Ecuador. In the past, Yum has sourced whitefish from the New Zealand hoki fishery and the South African hake fishery.
“We believe that our strongest impact and contribution to sustainability lies in the critical parts of our business — the success and diversity of our associates, feeding people, health and nutrition, our supply chain, the environment and community development,” said Yum Chairman and CEO David Novak.
Yum’s first corporate social responsibility report was issued in 2008.
FOS-certified sushi available at Matsuri
Friend of the Sea on Thursday announced that Matsuri restaurants in France joined sushi chains in the United Kingdom and Switzerland by serving sustainable sushi.
FOS-certified yellowfin tuna, farmed kingfish and mulloway are now available at Matsuri’s 11 locations in Paris, Lyon, Reims and Geneve as well as four more boutiques to be opened by year’s end.
“The sushi market is growing and competition is fierce. Friend of the Sea’s trusted eco-label matches our customers demand for sustainable fish,” said Matsuri President Eric Woog. “Matsuri has been committed to reducing its environmental impacts since 2008. It has already reduced by 16 percent its CO2 emissions and it has switched to organic rise. Matsuri is also at work on new recycled packaging and several other organic products.”
Omega Protein acquires Cyvex Nutrition
Fish oil and fishmeal manufacturer Omega Protein on Thursday announced that it acquired Irvine, Calif.-based dietary supplement supplier Cyvex Nutrition.
“The acquisition of Cyvex provides Omega Protein with a strong line of non-marine based products and a stronger omega-3 distribution network for OmegaPure, our proprietary refined menhaden fish oil,” said Omega Protein President and CEO Joe von Rosenberg. “Cyvex provides us with an immediate presence in the human health and wellness segment, and we now will have access to the top supplement retailers who purchase a variety of ingredients, including fish oil.”
Researchers: Omega-3 required for antidepressant benefits
Researchers at the University of Illinois, after completing a review of
previously published research on the antidepressant benefits of omega-3
fatty acids, have concluded that DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) alone did
not appear to offer any antidepressant benefits and that EPA
(eicosapentaenoic acid) is needed for clear benefits.
“Our analysis clarifies the precise type of omega-3 fatty acid that is
effective for people with depression and explains why previous findings
have been contradictory,” said John Davis, a University of Illinois
research professor. “The EPA predominant formulation is necessary for
the therapeutic action to occur. The DHA predominant formulation does
not have antidepressant efficacy.”
