Category: News

On the occasion of Environment Day and Green April, Matís employees took action and collected rubbish around the company's headquarters at Vínlandsleið 12.

There was no need to pick up the rubbish, as much had accumulated after the winter.

On Wednesday 2 May, a doctoral dissertation in mechanical engineering will take place at the Faculty of Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Iceland's School of Engineering and Natural Sciences. Simulation of temperature changes during transport of fresh fish products.

See news on the web University of Iceland

Opponents are Trygve Magne Eikevik, professor of mechanical engineering, Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim and dr. Jean Moureh, Refrigerating Process Engineering Research Unit, IRSTEA, France.

Dr. Ólafur Pétur Pálsson, professor and president of the Faculty of Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science, will chair the ceremony, which will take place in the Celebration Hall of the University of Iceland in the Main Building and will begin at 14:00.

Abstract from the study

Temperature control in the transport of fresh food from processing to the market has a decisive effect on the spoilage processes of the product. Fresh fish products are examples of such products. The aim of this dissertation is to analyze and improve the temperature control in the cooling chains of fresh fish products from processing to the market through experiments and mathematical heat transfer models. The results of environmental and product temperature measurements in actual air and sea transport processes are used to design transport simulator experiments, where different packaging solutions are compared in terms of insulation value and the quality of the fish products they contain. The results of the simulation experiments are used to verify the results of three-dimensional heat transfer models of fresh and / or super-chilled whitefish packed in individual boxes or stackers on pallets under heat stress.

The results indicate considerable problems in temperature control in air transport, especially in the case of passenger aircraft, but less so in container transport by ship. However, improvements are still needed in some maritime transport chains. The importance of pre-packing before packing is demonstrated to maintain the correct fish temperature during transport, especially during flight. The same applies to frozen cooling mats, which are recommended to be spread as much as possible around fish fillets or pieces in packages and thus even out their cooling effect. Measurements indicate that a temperature difference of up to 10.5 ° C can be expected within an entire pallet of fresh fillets in poorly temperature-controlled air transport. It can be assumed that this temperature difference causes the shelf life of products in the corner boxes of the pallet to be up to 1-1.5 days shorter than products in the center of the pallet.

The insulation value of expanded polystyrene (EPS) is higher than that of comparable corrugated plastic (CP) boxes. In the project, a three-dimensional model of corner-rounded foam box is developed in the ANSYS FLUENT software with the aim of improving box insulation and product quality. Analysis by model is the basis for a new 5 kg foam box, which is now manufactured by the largest manufacturer of foam boxes in Iceland. Other heat transfer models that have been developed in the project include a cooling mat on top of super-chilled cod fillets in two types of EPS boxes and cooled fillets in a CP box without a cooling mat. Furthermore, models of pallets with chilled or supercooled fish are being developed to study the effect of location on pallets, size of pallets and precooling on the development of fish temperature under thermal stress.

The doctoral dissertation is based on six scientific articles and one conference paper. Five scientific articles have already been published or approved for publication in international scientific journals.

The main supervisor was Halldór Pálsson, associate professor at the Faculty of Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science at the University of Iceland. Other members of the doctoral committee were Sigurjón Arason, associate professor at the Faculty of Food and Nutrition at the University of Iceland and chief engineer at Matís ohf., Magnús Þór Jónsson, professor at the Faculty of Industrial Engineering, Mechanical Engineering and Computer Science, Sjöfn Sigurgísladóttir, former CEO of Matís ohf. and Viktor Popov, director of the Wessex Institute of Technology.

The research is related to the projects "Simulation of cooling processes", which were funded by the AVS Fisheries Research Fund (R 037-08), the Technology Development Fund (081304508) and the University of Iceland Research Fund and the European project "Chill on" (www.chill-on.com). Matís ohf. provided Björn's research facilities.

Starts: 02/05/2011 at 14:00
Location: Main building
Further location: Celebration hall

About the doctoral dissertation
Björn Margeirsson was born in 1979 in Blönduós. He completed a BS degree in mechanical engineering at the University of Iceland in 2003, worked at the General Engineering Office from 2003 to 2005 and completed an MS degree in mechanical engineering at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg in 2007. Since graduating, he has worked at Matís ohf. as a specialist, later a project manager and now a professional manager in the Processing, Value Added and Farming divisions.

Björn Margeirsson is married to Rakel Ingólfsdóttir, a medical student, and they have a daughter, Arna, who was born in 2010.

About the doctoral candidate
Björn Margeirsson was born in 1979 in Blönduós, Iceland. He finished his BSc degree in mechanical engineering at the University of Iceland in 2003, worked at Almenna Consulting Engineers from 2003 to 2005 and earned his MSc degree in mechanical engineering at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg, Sweden in 2007. From graduation he has worked at Matis ltd as a research scientist, project manager and currently as a research group leader in the Value Chain, Processing and Aquaculture division. Björn is married to Rakel Ingólfsdóttir, medical student, and their daughter, Arna, was born in 2010.

The dissertation can be accessed on Matís' website, http://www.matis.is/media/utgafa/krokur/BMPhDThesis.pdf.

Abstract
Temperature control is a critical parameter to retard quality deterioration of perishable foodstuff, such as fresh fish, during distribution from processing to consumers. This thesis is aimed at analyzing and improving the temperature management in fresh fish chill chains from processing to market by means of experiments and numerical heat transfer modeling. Ambient and product temperatures are mapped in real multi-modal distribution chains, which are both sea and air based. The results serve as a basis for simulation experiments, in which different packaging units and solutions are compared with respect to thermal insulation and product quality maintenance and more optimal ones are proposed. The experimental results are used to validate 3-D heat transfer models of fresh or superchilled whitefish, packaged in single boxes or multiple boxes assembled on a pallet, under thermal load.

Much more severe temperature control problems are measured in air transport chains, especially in passenger airplanes, compared to sea transport. However, space for improvement in sea transport chains has also been discovered. The results underline the importance of precooling whitefish products before packaging for air freight and applying well distributed cooling packs inside the packaging. The results imply that product temperature differences of up to 10.5 ° C can occur in a non-superchilled fresh fish pallet load and the storage life difference between the most and the least sensitive boxes on a full size pallet in a real air transport chain can exceed 1–1.5 days. It is demonstrated that even though a widely used expanded polystyrene (EPS) box design with sharp corners offers better thermal insulation than a corrugated plastic (CP) box, the sharp-corner design can be significantly improved. Such design improvement has been accomplished by developing a numerical heat transfer model in ANSYS FLUENT resulting in a new 5-kg EPS box currently manufactured by the largest EPS box manufacturer in Iceland. Other temperature-predictive models of products, developed and validated in this thesis, consider a cooling pack on top of superchilled cod packaged in two types of EPS boxes, compared to fresh fish packaged in a CP box without a cooling pack. Finally, models are developed for pallet loads of different sizes containing either chilled or superchilled fish. The models are used to confirm the temperature-maintaining effect of precooling and estimate the effect of pallet stack size.

The project Enriched seafood which was done in collaboration between Matís and Grímur kokk in the Westman Islands and Iceprotein in Sauðárkrókur is now coming to an end.

Several prototypes of products from Icelandic seafood were developed there, to which biomaterials from Icelandic seafood have been added, such as algae extract with defined bioactivity, hydrolysates to increase protein content and fish oil to increase omega-3 fatty acids.
The results show that it is possible to increase the amount of omega-3 fatty acids in fish balls without compromising the taste quality. The same can be said about the addition of algae powder and also succeeded in increasing the amount of protein in the fish balls. As a tool for active and successful product development with the participation of consumers, two focus groups of people were obtained to gain insight into consumers' experiences and knowledge about enrichment, enriched seafood, their consumption of seafood and food supplements and health-related lifestyles.

Consumer surveys were conducted to examine consumers' tastes for the prototypes compared to traditional products already on the market. Information on the bioactive substances and their activity influenced how people liked the products. The effect of the information depended on various factors, such as attitudes towards health and food, attitudes towards the ingredients of the product tested, as well as factors such as age and education.

An online consumer survey of more than 500 people showed that people are generally more positive about enrichment in the case of known hygiene products such as omega-3. It is also better to provide information on effectiveness even if it is a known substance, as it enhances people's positive experience of the product. Enrichment with kelp also seems to be a viable option as information on the use value of kelp in the product was given and the same can be said regarding fish protein. These products generally appeal more to people who focus on food hygiene, which is a fairly large group according to these findings. In general, it can be concluded from these results that the enrichment of seafood is a realistic possibility, but labeling and information to consumers must be considered.

In this project, experience was created at Matís, which will be further developed and used by other companies in product development and marketing of target foods, where consumers' wishes will be taken into account. Consumer surveys showed that it is very important how the marketing of such products will take place in order to reach selected consumer groups who are interested in such a targeted diet. The step has been a step forward in which bioactive substances have been added to ready-made consumer products. A very important result of this project is that in 2011 a grant was obtained from the Nordic Innovation Fund, NICe, to continue larger projects in this field and thus contribute to the increased value of seafood and marine life.

For further information Emilia Martinsdóttir at Matís.

Sigurjón Arason, chief engineer at Matís, was honored by the Icelandic Society of Engineers on the association's 100th anniversary.

On the first day of summer, 19 April, the Icelandic Society of Engineers turned 100 years old.

On that day, the company awarded the VFÍ Century Award in three categories and Sigurjón Arason, chief engineer at Matís and previously at the Fisheries Research Institute, received recognition in the category "They plowed the field".

Sigurjón was honored for his initiative and exceptional perseverance in implementing a number of innovations that have been crucial for the quality and profitable utilization of raw materials from marine catches and for the dissemination of knowledge in Iceland and abroad.

Matís offers a wide range of interesting research-related summer jobs in the summer of 2012, and students are encouraged to submit a job application.  

We are looking for university students to work on research projects and service measurements in the fields of food science, engineering, pharmacology, computer science, law and natural sciences. Further information on the research projects that are available can be found here.

Do you want to take part in expanding the path of local food in the tourism industry?

Symposium in Hvolnar Hvolsvöllur
April 24, 2012, 1: 00-4: 00 p.m.

Tourism is one of the industries that has been seen as a growth driver in the countryside. Despite strong growth in the sector over the last decade, this has not resulted in increased economic growth in rural areas. This indicates a large economic leak when it comes to the consumption of tourists in local areas. One way to increase the economic impact of tourism in rural areas and reduce leakage is to build links with local food production.

• What is sustainability? What can I do and how?
• Opportunities in tourism related to food.
• Measures to increase sustainability in tourism in the South?

Agenda
13:00 Seminar set.
Tinna Björk Arnardóttir, NMÍ

13:10 Food and sustainable tourism. Opportunity, collaboration.
Guðjón Þorkelsson, Matís  

13:40 Sustainability, the situation in Iceland.
Stefán Gíslason, Environice

14:10 Coffee break

14:30 Sustainable community in Sólheimar in Grímsnes, food and tourism
Erlendur Pálsson, Sólheimar

15:00 Katluafurðir - Experiences from the region

15:30 Summary and discussion
Tinna Björk Arnardóttir, NMÍ

Admission free
Moderator Tinna Björk Arnardóttir, Innovation Center
More information at TinnaBjork@nmi.is

Matís' two employees were in Tanzania for a few days recently to guide them on how to set up a solar oven to dry fish. An interesting story about this appeared in Stöðvar 2's news, but Hugrún Halldórsdóttir, a journalist, was curious about this interesting project.

The news from Station 2 can be found here and here.

More about the project
Fishing and processing advice in Tanzania
In the autumn of 2011, Matís signed a contract with the Tanzanian government for a project on Lake Tanganyika in Tanzania. The project is funded by a loan from the Nordic Development Fund (NDF) based in Helsinki. The project was put out to tender in the Nordic countries and Matís won the tender.

Lake Tanganyika is one of the largest freshwater lakes in the world, almost 19,000 square kilometers in size. The lake is also the second deepest freshwater in the world, 1500 meters where it is deepest. Four countries border the lake, i.e. Tanzania, Congo, Burundi and Zambia. Tanzanians fish in Tanganyika, but both fishing and processing are primitive. Matís' project is, among other things, to assist in the development of methods to make better use of the fish and make it more valuable.

Matís has agreed with the Icelandic companies Ráðgarður Skipráðgjöf ehf. and Verkfræðistofa Jóhann Indriðason ehf. (VJI) for part of the project. Ráðgarður will provide advice and oversee the construction of a specialized vessel to be used for research on Tanganyika and fish stocks in the lake, while the VJI engineering office will manage procurement for the project. In addition, Matís has entered into an agreement with the company Goch in Tanzania, which will handle the socio-economic part of the project and communication with fishing communities on Lake Tanganyika.

"This project is a great challenge for us because the conditions there are all very primitive and different from what we know. We thus need to find ways to develop fish processing based on what is available, but we can not afford to have electricity, oil or other energy sources as elsewhere. A big part of the project is then about training and teaching the locals how to handle the fish and we will send people from us who will choose a few villages by the lake and guide the residents. It can therefore be said that part of the project will be carried out here at home and at later stages we will then work according to our plans on site. This will be a very exciting project that we expect to culminate in 2012, "says Oddur Már Gunnarsson, division manager at Matís, who is also the project manager of the Tanzania project. Together with him, Margeir Gissurarson, project manager at the Matís project, manages.

Further information: Oddur Már Gunnarsson

The company Primex won the Iceland Innovation Award 2012 right now. Matís sincerely congratulates the employees of Primex on the award. There has been a very good collaboration between Primex and Matis and one of the company's employees is located in Matís' premises at Vínlandsleið in Grafarholt.

Matís has now worked with Primex on a number of projects for a long time. One of these projects is to develop a method to extend the shelf life of fresh seafood with chitosan, which has both antimicrobial and antioxidant effects. The benefits are increased shelf life, improved quality and safety. This innovation will lead to an increase in the value of seafood and at the same time be useful for other foods.

More about the award ceremony (from Rannís website, www.rannis.is)
At Nýsköpunarþing, the management of innovation was made a topic of discussion and four members of the business community were invited to share their experiences and projects in this field. More than 200 people attended the congress, which was held at the Grand Hotel Reykjavík.

Primex, founded in 1997 and located in Siglufjörður, produces chitin and chitosan from shrimp shells. Chitosan is a valuable and sought-after material, especially in foreign markets, and the company has gained a good market position in the United States, Asia and Europe, in addition to which the company recently entered the market in Russia. The properties of chitosan are used in the production of food supplements, wound care products and cosmetics as well as being used in wine production and food. In food production, the material is used as a natural fiber and preservative, and this new use has opened up more opportunities for the company. Primex has received ISO 22000 standard certification which ensures safety in food production.

What used to be waste is now raw material
The original idea for the company was how to increase the utilization of marine products by utilizing waste as a raw material and at the same time respecting environmental considerations. Shrimp shells are very environmentally polluting, but they have been thrown into the sea for years. After learning about the possibilities and opportunities of the material chitosan and getting acquainted with production methods and markets, the companies Rammi in Siglufjörður and Síldarvinnsla ríkisins decided to establish a company around the idea and build a factory in Siglufjörður. The company Kítín, later Primex, was formed, which began production of the chitin and chitosan in 1999. An agreement was made with the American company Vanson in 2004 for the purchase of knowledge to build a factory and for a patent for the LipoSan Ultra brand. Vanson was then the largest producer of chitosan in the United States but moved all its production to Siglufjörður. With this, markets opened up in the United States for Primex, but mainly for chitosan in food supplements and cosmetics.  

Production of own consumer products
LipoSan is a fat binder with natural fibers that chitosan contains and has the unique property of absorbing fat. The product is intended for those who need to control their body weight and improve digestion. Studies have also shown the substance's ability to lower cholesterol. LipoSan products are available in all major pharmacies in the country, as well as health food stores. ChitoClear, on the other hand, is a wound spray and gel for animals and the substance is very healing and reduces pain and itching in and around wounds. In addition, it works against bacterial and fungal growth. ChitoClear has been sold in Iceland and Germany. ChitoClear has mainly been marketed for animals but the material is also good for humans. Since 2001, Primex has been selling chitosan to companies in Europe and the United States that manufacture products to stop bleeding and heal wounds. In 2004, the company was recognized for chitosan patches as one of the top ten military inventions, which have been used, among other things, on the battlefield in Iraq, where they saved the lives of hundreds of soldiers.

The future is based on the export of chitosan
In future, Primex's production will be based on the export of chitosan as a raw material for other manufacturers. At the same time, the possibility of diversifying the production of own consumer products, such as cosmetics and healing ointments, is being examined. The possibility of producing protein from waste from shell processing to aquaculture feed production is also being examined, but the shrimp shells that Primex uses come from Rammar hf.'s shrimp factories. in Siglufjörður and Dögun in Sauðárkrókur. Icelandic chitosan is a high-quality material and there is a lot of development work and research on the activity of the material behind the production. The quality has enabled the company to enter a more valuable market. The company now employs fifteen specially trained employees who have put the company on the map in demanding markets abroad.

Innovation Award Iceland 2012
The Iceland Innovation Prize is awarded by Rannís, Íslandsstofa, Nýsköpunarmiðstöð Íslands and Nýsköpunarsjóður atvinnulífsins, to companies that are considered to have excelled in the development of new products or services based on research and scientific work and have achieved market success. The purpose of the award is to draw attention to the important connections that exist between research and the acquisition of knowledge and increased value creation in the business sector. The prize is a statue of the fertility god Frey by sculptor Hallstein Sigurðsson.

When choosing a prize winner, consideration is given to whether it is a new start-up company, whether it is based on innovative technology and ideas and is demanding of knowledge. It also assesses the value added of products and whether the company has been successful in the market. It is assessed whether the company is likely to hold its own and whether the management of innovation is exemplary. Finally, it is assessed whether the company is an incentive for others to follow the same path.

Work has recently begun on a new European project, TDS Exposure, in which Matís participates. The aim of the project is to coordinate research on the total consumption of undesirable contaminants in food.

The project is important for risk assessment and all those who monitor the effects of the contaminants on health. The name of the European project in English is Total Diet Study Exposure and its short name is TDS-Exposure, but the project has been given the Icelandic name Research on the total consumption of contaminants from food.

The project aims to improve and standardize monitoring of how exposed we are to unwanted contaminants in food as we eat it. The work on the project is based on a method known in English as Total Diet Studies (TDS). The method assesses the amount of unwanted contaminants people receive from finished and cooked foods and therefore gives a solid picture of the problem from the perspective of the consumer and regulators.

The part of the research in which Matís participates includes the development and implementation of a quality framework for parties that conduct research on the total consumption of contaminants, but also the analysis of data on contaminants. Matís will also take part in an experiment to carry out a harmonized study of total consumption of at least one foreign substance in Iceland, and these results will be compared with comparable studies carried out in the Czech Republic, Finland, Germany and Portugal. Matís also manages a work package that is to disseminate information regarding the results of the project to stakeholders.

Active control of undesirable substances in food and risk assessment are key elements in ensuring safe foods that are free of harmful substances such as fungicides, heavy metals and pesticides. The results of research on the total consumption of contaminants enable regulators to obtain an actual assessment of which contaminants and which foods are most important in assessing the total consumption of undesirable substances in food. But they also provide information so that a risk assessment can be made for the consumption of these substances and assess their impact on human health over a long period of time. A number of different methods have been used in Europe, but in some countries research into the total consumption of contaminants has not yet been conducted.

Researchers from 19 different European countries are taking part in the project, which will test and harmonize the methods used in Europe for food sampling, measurement of food contaminants and data quality assessment, and subsequently define best research practices. This information will be invaluable for regulators and risk assessors and for organizations such as the European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) and the World Health Organization (WHO).

For further information Helga Gunnlaugsdóttir at Matís.

Recently, two master's students in energy biotechnology at the University of Akureyri worked for Matís in sequencing thermophilic bacterial strains.

The bacterial strains in question are from hot springs in Iceland and are interesting because they produce hydrogen, ethanol and methane among other end products.

The students' master's project is research on microorganisms from hot springs in Iceland that produce products that can be used as energy sources. The main emphasis is on looking for bacterial strains that produce desirable substances from cheap raw materials that are produced in Iceland or are easy and profitable to cultivate domestically for production. These students are named Hrönn Brynjarsdóttir and Jan Eric Jessen and it will be interesting to see the progress of their project. Their supervisor is Jóhann Örlygsson.

Matís has extensive knowledge of thermophilic microorganisms and one of the projects in which Matís is a key participant is to develop methods in biotechnology for the production of ethanol from wood and plant mass, ie to utilize biomass that can be used. as fuel.

Timber on the fuel tank
One of the growing aspects of Matís' operations is biotechnology and how that technology can be used to develop new production methods and thus strengthen new knowledge. One of the Nordic projects that Matís is currently working on is the development of biotechnology for the production of ethanol from wood and plant biomass. This could be said that timber is converted for use on the fuel tank, ie. that biomass will be used for fuel production, but a significant amount of it will be generated in the Nordic countries.

The project is run by Matís from Iceland, Statoil ASA, Wayland AB and SINTEF from Norway, INNVENTIA AB from Sweden, the Technical University of Denmark (DTU) and the Technical Research Center of Finland (VIT). The project received outstanding funding from the Nordic Council of Ministers through the Nordic Energy Fund.

The project is very diverse and involves, among other things, developing methods for pre-treating the biomass so that it can be used by fermentation organisms for ethanol production. Also to develop efficient enzyme technology to break down biomass into fermentable sugars and genetically modify yeast so that they can break down polysaccharides. Matís will develop and improve thermophilic ethanol-forming fermentation bacteria using genetic engineering, but bacteria that have been isolated from hot springs can often break down cellulose efficiently. However, these bacteria produce additives such as acetic and lactic acid.

The goal is that with stronger thermophilic bacteria it will be possible to increase ethanol production, reduce or completely stop the production of additives and break down cellulose. The ultimate goal is to create a production system that combines the breakdown of cellulose and the fermentation of ethanol in one biological unit / system.

For further information Guðmundur Óli Hreggviðsson at Matís.