Finnish food technology company, Hailia Nordic, is turning fish filleting sidestreams into a ready-to-use food product, allowing fish processors to improve profitability and sustainability, and providing consumers with a healthy protein source.
The world’s seafood consumption is expected to increase by 50 per cent by 2050, and there is a clear need for new low-carbon proteins. To meet the demand, the seafood industry must improve its resource-efficiency to help companies in the industry align their operations with increasing environmental obligations.
Hailia launched a new technology that would further this goal, in cooperation with fish supplier Kalavapriikki and S Group, a retail cooperative that holds a 48 per cent market share of Finnish retail and also operates in Estonia.
The innovative Nyhtökirjolohi, or “pulled rainbow trout” product, launched under S Group’s Kotimaista private label and made from rainbow trout side streams provided by Kalavapriikki, hits the shelves of over 500 grocery stores and supermarkets in Finland in September.
The new technology takes the parts of the fish that are discarded in the filleting process but are still nutritious and full of meat, such as frames, heads and fins, and turns them into a tasty food product that is ready to use. The texture of the end product resembles that of cooked fish fillet, making it a versatile ingredient for home kitchens and industrial food producers alike. The product launched currently uses rainbow trout, but the process can also be applied to other fish as well.
Hailia CEO, Michaela Lindström, said the company was committed to driving sustainable aquaculture and redefining seafood industry practices.
“No company can do this alone. Through this partnership with S Group and Kalavapriikki, we can provide a very strong proof of concept for this entire circular concept,” said Lindström.
“The food produced with Hailia’s patent-pending technology ticks all the boxes required by industrial food producers, including sufficient production capacity to meet the needs of a major retail chain like S Group.”
Currently, fish processing companies sell their sidestreams mainly for feed or fish oil production. However, selling them for use in food products is 10 to 15 times more profitable and can provide a significant boost for the international fishing industry, which in many parts of the world struggles with declining quotas and increasing environmental obligations.
Kalavapriikki CEO, Jari Korhonen, said fish has disappeared from the dinner tables of many urban people and young families even though research shows that consumers would like to eat more fish.
“We are passionate about answering this challenge, because we want to bring domestic fish back into Finnish people’s everyday diet. This new product allows us to make more food out of the same raw material, which is also good for the climate and environment,” said Korhonen.
Hailia’s ambition is to establish similar partnerships internationally and to licence its unique technology to fish processing companies. The company is currently raising capital in a funding round closing later in the year.
