Powder-loc technology solves age-old food industry problem

Ocean Nutrition Canada Limited has invested seven years of dedicated research and development resources to create a breakthrough technology that enables food companies to create nutritionally dense foods with Omega-3 from fish oil as a healthy ingredient. Our innovative, and patented, Powder-loc? microencapsulation technology has revolutionized the food industry’s ability to put fish oil based Omega-3 in a wide variety of foods without the taste or smell of fish. Powder-loc? microencapsulation has been the catalyst for creating a convergence of forces enabling consumers to enjoy the goodness of fish in the foods they consume every day.

What is Omega-3?

Omega-3 is an essential nutrient found in fish and certain plant oils. It is vital because your body needs it for good heart health and normal growth and development, but your body cannot produce it on its own. Omega-3 includes EPA (Eicosapentaenoic Acid), DHA (Docosahexaenoic Acid) and ALA (Alpha-Linolenic Acid), but only EPA and DHA are essential to good heart health and normal growth and development.

Fish Oil is the Best Source of Omega-3

Only fish oil contains both EPA and DHA, the essential components of Omega-3 that are so vital to your overall good health. Plants, such as flax, offer ALA which humans need to convert to EPA and DHA. However, the conversion efficiency is very low … only about 5%.

Health Benefits of Fish Oil

Health professionals and major health organizations around the world endorse Omega-3 as being essential for your overall good health. Specifically, EPA and DHA have been scientifically linked to:

• Supporting cardiovascular health
• Maintaining healthy brain function
• Maintaining visual acuity
• Sustaining healthy organs

Infants need EPA and DHA as vital building blocks for normal growth and development. In fact, mothers’ breast milk has a DHA:EPA ratio of 4:1. So, even Mother Nature concurs that EPA and DHA are essential to healthy infant development.

EPA is a natural anti-inflammatory and research suggests that it plays an important role in reducing the effects of Arthritis, Asthma, and Coronary Heart Disease.

DHA plays an important role in both brain health and heart health.

A Positive Regulatory Environment for Fish Oil

The fact that there are over 8,000 research papers espousing the health benefits of EPA and DHA has contributed to the positive regulatory environment for fish that is evolving around the world.

In the U.K., the British Nutrition Foundation recommends consuming one to two portions of oil fish per week or, a minimum of 1500 mg of EPA and DHA per week. And, in Italy, concentrated fish oil is approved for the prevention of secondary heart attacks. Similarly, in North America, the Council for Responsible Nutrition recommends that frequent fish consumption or supplementation with EPA and DHA are the best ways to achieve a protective intake level of Omega-3.

The Nutritional Problem

Experts agree that people are not consuming enough EPA and DHA in their daily diets. In fact, most people consume less than 100 mg of EPA and DHA per day. This low consumption means that there is a true dietary deficiency. In contrast, the International Society for the Study of Fatty Acids & Lipids (ISSFAL) recommend a combined minimum intake of 500 mg of EPA and DHA per day. In a similar vein, the World Health Organization (WHO) recommends regular fish consumption (at least one to two servings of oily fish per week) to protect against coronary heart disease and ischaemic stroke.

Industry’s Problem

In essence, industry’s problem is that there is a growing demand for nutritionally dense foods and for Omega-3 products specifically; however, up until recently, it was difficult to include Omega-3 from fish oil in foods without altering the taste or the smell of the food product.

Introducing MEG-3?

MEG-3? EPA/DHA healthy food ingredient is produced using our patented Powder-loc? microencapsulation technology. Powder-loc? is an innovative microencapsulation technology that has revolutionized the ability of food manufacturers to use fish oil as a healthy food ingredient.

Powder-loc? uses a double shell protection system to keep the EPA and DHA locked into the microcap while keeping the smell and taste of the fish locked out of the food. Now consumers can enjoy all the health benefits of EPA and DHA from fish oil … the purest and healthiest source of Omega-3 … while still enjoying the same great taste of their favourite brand name food products.

It’s a Win/Win Scenario

Food retailers finally have a solution to their age-old problem of how to give consumers the goodness of fish without the taste or smell of fish. Consumers benefit from improved nutrition because they can get the goodness of fish without the fish in the foods they love to eat every day.