Controlling Quality in Fish Oil Production (Fish Oil Producers Confront a Sea of QC Issues)

The present and future quality of the fish oil market depends on many links in the product chain, from fisheries and raw material importers to testing labs and manufacturers. The industry cannot rest on its gains in the areas of contamination, but must continue to improve purification technologies, tweak testing methods, fight oxidation and tie products (i.e. ratios/levels) to researched benefits. The other trick is dealing with those companies ignoring the testing requirements and existing resources like the Voluntary Fish Oil Monograph and innovative technologies. The good news is the trade associations represent almost all of the world's fish oil companies, meaning nearly the entire industry segment has committed to quality control.

"We work closely with the value-chain as well as the regulatory authorities to ensure that the products are safe and sustainable," Jackson said. "However, our members just produce the raw fish oil; how this is refined and converted into its final form is carried out by others."

Many of these others are GOED members. "There are not a lot of companies in our membership, which covers 90-percent of the world's production, that are not following the monograph," Ismail touted. "I think that's part of why [quality improvements] been successful."

Covert added achieving the highest quality is achieved by producing, testing, warehousing and transporting fish oil supply and product according to cGMPs and HACCP guidelines.

In fact, many in the fish oil industry suggested fish oil segment's handling of quality issues should serve as a model for other parts of the natural products industry, especially botanicals, as herbal supplements and other plant-based products and foods have been the subject of many recalls and quality gaffes in recent years. Fish oil has not had the same frequency of problems recently, but is still under suspicion in a media apparently undereducated on the fish supply and processed used to make fish oil products. There's something fishy about that, given the strides the fish oil companies have made.

The Quality Control section is sponsored by Ethical Naturals; however, the company does not review or approve editorial content.