Work on the project "Marine processing of cod liver oil" was recently completed. The project was funded by AVS and carried out by Matís under the guidance of Marvin Inga Einarsson. The aim of the project was to investigate the economics of processing liver into high-quality cod liver oil directly after processing on board and to compare the benefits of such processing with the landing of whole liver.
The results of the project indicated that it is not profitable to work only cod climbing on board trawlers, but it is more profitable to land it fresh. However, profits can be significantly increased by processing all cod, saithe and haddock livers together, and profits can be even higher if all the salmon is processed, including the liver.
It turned out to be more profitable to process fish oil on board freezer trawlers compared to icefish trawlers, considering that icefish trawlers will generate income if they start producing fish oil on board. It is income from the liver that would otherwise be landed. This does not apply to freezer trawlers, but they generally do not use liver.
Marvin says the results show that the production of slag oil on board freezer trawlers can be a cost-effective option, especially when looking at older trawlers that do not have room for flour processing. The equipment in question covers about 9 square meters and storage tanks under a light of approx. 15 cubic meters.