Fish oil: Ingredient innovations expand product applications

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As novel, plant-based marine ingredients continue to roll out, fish oil manufacturers have managed to innovate and compete within the growing marketplace. While fish oils are popular in the form of softgels, growing consumer demand for functional foods and beverages has presented fish oil manufacturers with the challenge of broadening the potential applications of their ingredients. One supplier, AlaskOmega, produced by Wiley Companies (Coshocton, OH), has managed to meet this challenge with its newest innovation: Omega-3 Powder 3221.

Omega-3 Powder 3221 is an omega-3 concentrate designed for food, beverage, and dietary supplement applications. “The challenge with incorporating fish oil into any food or beverage is, as we know, that oil and water don’t mix. Also, there is high potential for oil oxidation if the oil isn’t well-protected from oxygen,” explains Steve Dillingham, vice president of sales and marketing for the firm. “AlaskOmega Omega-3 Powder has excellent sensory characteristics without a fishy taste or smell due to the very low surface oil of the powder, and can blend well into many food or drink mix applications where the value-added addition of a high-EPA/DHA delivery is desired.”

According to Dillingham, the powder is made from AlaskOmega TG 320210 omega-3 concentrate as the base, which provides a minimum of 320 mg/g EPA and 210 mg/g DHA content. After being converted to a powder, the Omega-3 Powder 3221 ingredient allows for a delivery of 200 mg/g of EPA and DHA. “AlaskOmega Omega-3 powder is soluble in liquid, although it is recommended that no more than 2 g of powder is used in an 8-oz drink serving,” says Dillingham. “The powder should be well-tolerated across a diverse range of dry mix formulas, dairy, and bakery applications where prolonged high heat is not involved.” He adds that the powder is not well suited for compressed tableting.

Part of the ingredient’s advantage stems from the way AlaskOmega manufactures its oils. “AlaskOmega leads the omega-3 concentrate market in freshness, manufacturing oils with a Total Oxidation (TOTOX) limit of 5 or less,” explains Dillingham. “The combination of a low-TOTOX oil and a superior powder technology that greatly limits the amount of surface oil helps to reduce oil oxidation and potential sensory off notes.”

And for those concerned about the environmental impacts of marine oil production, AlaskOmega’s supply chain is completely transparent, using single-species Alaska pollack sourced directly from the Alaskan Bering. All the firm’s ingredients are certified sustainable by the Marine Stewardship Council. “Customers purchasing MSC-certified oils, powders, and finished-good products can also use the MSC ecolabel as part of the MSC Chain of Custody Certification program,” adds Dillingham.

Dillingham says the company is also looking at adding other AlaskOmega Omega-3 Powder ingredients, including a high-DHA AlaskOmega Omega-3 powder.