Value added fish by-products - Nordic Innovation

The ingredients have shown to have desired properties for the food processing industry as
well as for other industry such as the pharmaceutical and cosmetic industry. Therefore it is
very important to increase the knowledge on the influence of the variability in the raw
material on the properties of the final product. This includes factors such as difference within
species, between species, season and location of catching, variation in processing, handling
etc.
The fish industry is the main customer of these products. For fulfilling their demands,
important product properties need to be defined. Full utilization of all the material from the
process can also improve the public opinion and the image of the fish processing companies.
Earlier research on marine proteins (Kim & Mendis 2006; Thorkelsson & Kristinsson 2009;
Thorkelsson et al. 2009; Underland et al. 2009) has shown that they have bioactive properties
and beneficial health effects which make them a very interesting alternative for the food
industry. Production of healthy products from rest raw material gives opportunity to enter a
new high end market.
Using new biotechnology based on marine raw material we can provide new, stable and
healthy ingredients for food and nutraceuticals. For this purpose we need to i) increase the
yield of desirable products; ii) controlled processes accounting for variation in raw material
providing stable, healthy and high quality products; iii) documentation and iv) standardisation
of the process and properties of the marine ingredients.
In 2000-2004 an EU project (QLK1-CT-2000-01017/QLRT-2001-02829), Utilisation and
stabilisation of rest raw materials from cod species, was executed where the aim was to
evaluate properties of all the main rest raw materials from round fish processing (cod,
haddock, saithe, ling and tusk). The work focused on the fat and protein fractions mainly from
liver, viscera, heads, skins and cut-offs (v-cut and belly flap). One of the main outcomes of
the project was a database of properties and chemical composition of these rest raw materials
according to different seasons and locations. This database contains very important
information which can be utilized for more practical purpose with regard to the specific needs
of the producers. Pre-project financed by NICe was: "Bærekraftig verdiskaping fra
restprodukter fra fisk og skalldyr".
The project under discussion in this report can be look up on as a continuation of the above
mentioned projects.
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