Fish oil conservation...

Quite frequently we are asked by customers about the impact that the increased consumption of fish oil is having on stocks of fish world-wide.

These questions are usually triggered after reading an article about how the demand for Omega 3 fish oil is depleting the fishery stocks.  Naturally people are concerned about this.

Is it true? 

Absolutely not!  In my opinion the people responsible for circulating these 'news articles' are acting in a most unethical manner.  Without being to direct I can say that there are interested parties who extract DHA from algae have very much a vested interest in spreading this myth.

Why do I say it is a myth?

Quite simply because the statistics support what I am about to say.  I will explain.

Fish oil is a fisheries byproduct, not a target in its own right.

The fish is caught for its flesh.  The balance of the fish is 'rendered' into crude fish oil.   This crude fish oil which is a 'commodity' in most fisheries is sold for either use in its raw state or processed for other uses.

The majority of the oil is sold for agricultural uses.  Now, here is the important thing you need to know...

Only around 8% of the crude oil generated by the fish processing plants goes to the next stage which is refining in preparation for human consumption.  

So, the ONLY impact that the increased consumption of Omega 3 fish oil has had on the fisheries is to make them a little more valuable by way of increasing the cost of the crude oil a little bit.

It has had NO effect at all on conservation efforts because the fish is not caught for the oil alone.  It fact it would be uneconomic to do so.

In our case the Hoki oil we use is still a by product but unlike general crude fish oil it is all processed from one species and whilst fresh, not frozen.  It is then handled directly to our specification which means as the oil is rendered it passes through a nitrogen 'sparging' system straight into a special container so it is not exposed to air.  This is why our Omega 3 DHA fish oil is fresher than other consumer fish oils.

Of course that is only the first stage...but, a critical one.

So, when you read an article that tells you that the fish stocks are being depleted because of these 'naughty' fish oil supplement manufacturers you can smile to yourself and know that is just another bit of 'news' you can take with a grain of salt.

In good health,

Warren Matthews