The development holds the potential to provide a significant source of marine long-chain fatty acids for the aquaculture industry.
Agricultural bio-tech company Yield10 Bioscience and aquaculture feed manufacturer BioMar Group have entered into a partnership to commercialize an Omega-3 Camelina crop enriched with EPA and DHA, equivalent to fish oil.
This development, following a decade of research, holds the potential to provide a significant source of marine long-chain fatty acids for the aquaculture industry.
The Omega-3 Camelina product contains EPA and DHA levels comparable to many marine oil sources used today, according to a release from BioMar issued on Tuesday.
The feed producer has been involved in the development of Omega-3 Camelina since its inception in 2013, conducting numerous salmon trials in collaboration with the Rothamsted research team.
Producing omega-3 oil in Camelina represents a new land-based way to make this key aquafeed ingredient.
“A partnership with BioMar has the potential to combine the strengths of both companies for the accelerated development of the Omega-3 Camelina product. We look forward to working closely with BioMar to develop a collaborative program to bring this new source of high-quality EPA and EPA+DHA omega-3 oils to the market to strive to meet the aquaculture industry’s growth demand and sustainability goals,” said Yield10 CEO Oliver Peoples.
Over the next year, Yield10 expects to scale-up planted acres of Camelina to supply BioMar with oil for formulation and testing while also working towards securing regulatory approval for commercial production of Omega-3 Camelina oil and meal in the targeted production geographies.
The two companies believe that the Omega-3 Camelina technology will play an important role in the future omega-3 market, enabling access to key nutrients from sustainable sources and paving the way for future growth within the aquaculture industry.
