Ocean Nutrition Canada Limited (ONC), Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, Canada, recently expanded its capacity with a $19 million investment, securing its position as the largest fish oil manufacturer in the world.

The expansion of the company’s molecular distillation plant in Mulgrave, Nova Scotia, Canada means a 100% increase in MEG-3 concentrate capacity. Further, through its joint venture collaboration with Alicorp Corporation in Peru to build a second fish oil manufacturing plant, ONC has realized a 200% capacity increase in its MEG-3 30% fish oil. “With the exponential growth in consumer demand for omega 3 food and supplement products we knew we had to be ahead of the game. With our capacity expansion we are more than prepared to meet any supply demands for both our fish oil and micro-encapsulated ingredients,” said Robert Orr, president, ONC.

And this is just the beginning for omega 3s, according to Mr. Orr. “We believe there is still a lot of room to grow, especially when you consider the emerging science that continues to expand the category’s reach into other therapeutic areas,” he said.

He also claims that any slowing of growth at the mass level is a direct result of the Leiner bankruptcy, and to a lesser extent the economy. “Due to the Leiner bankruptcy there was little to no promotion of the category for more than a year,” he said. “And now we are contending with food inflation so some companies have put omega 3s on hold. The challenge for the future will be weaning people off low prices,” he said, adding, “The good news is omega 3s are still very much in their infancy in functional foods. While it has taken longer for them to hit their full momentum, the omega 3 bubble certainly has not burst. If EPA and DHA can’t make it in functional foods, nothing can.”

ONC’s capacity expansion will ensure supply is available for supplement manufacturers and food companies as they strive to meet this growing demand. As for the future, Mr. Orr is very optimistic, predicting double-digit growth for omega 3s in supplements and functional foods for the next several years.