February 15-18, 2009 Washington State Convention Center Seattle ...

UTILIZATION OF FISH PROCESSING BYPRODUCTS
P.J. Bechtel
USDA- Agricultural Research Service
245 O’Neill Building
University of Alaska
Fairbanks AK 99775 USA
bechtel@sfos.uaf.edu
The term “waste” has often been used for materials that were left over after primary food processing. If no other alternatives are
available, these materials must be disposed of in a satisfactory manner, which creates an expense for the processor. However,
a closer look finds that this “waste” can be used as the raw materials to make other valued products. Because these materials
are not now viewed as waste material they are commonly referred to as byproduct. There are many examples where yesterdays
“waste“ became a valued raw material for further processing. Enhancing the utilization of byproduct can generate additional
profit and possibly reduce environmental concerns.
The largest source of fish processing byproducts in the United States comes from the processing of wild marine fish in Alaska.
In Alaska large amounts of pollock, salmon, cod and flat fish are harvested annually resulting in over 1million metric tones of
byproducts, which can be utilized to produce a number of products including meals and oils. The processing of aquaculture
reared animals is another source of fish byproducts that can be used to make higher valued food and feed ingredients. Major
byproducts from the fish processing industry include heads, viscera, frames and skin. However, these products can be further
fractionated into organs such as gonads, livers, stomachs and other tissues, which can be used as raw materials to produce
unique and potentially valued food and feed ingredients and a host of other products.
Enhancing the utilization of fish processing byproducts can generate additional profit from these varied raw materials. There
are bio resources form wild and aquaculture harvests that can be potentially utilized for the production of interesting products.
The array or byproducts available and their potential utilization will be discussed.
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