Principles
Bee Arctic Blue We have 6 different principles.
You might already know a few:
- We will never include animal krill oil in our product range, as it is the food of whales. Additionally, it does not offer good value for money, as it contains particularly little EPA/DHA.
- We will never include (concentrated) fish oil from sardines and anchovies, because this oil is made from whole fish that are ground up . Oil from these fish will also never carry the MSC label. We believe it is better to make oil from the fillet trimmings after the fish has been used for human consumption. Additionally, anchovies and sardines are the menu for dolphins, seabirds, sea lions, and whales.
- We will always use MSC-certified fish oil , and we have good reasons for doing so. We are MSC certified (MSC-C-52511). See our products with the MSC label.
Quality
In terms of quality , we have the following 3 principles. Pure Arctic MSC fish oil must be clean, fresh, and natural . But what exactly do these fine words mean?
Beautiful
Pure MSC fish oil is made (from the fillet trimmings) of fresh wild cod species. This fish swims in cold northern seas. These are among the cleanest waters in the world, far away from the plastic soup in the Pacific Ocean between Asia and South America.
The reality, however, is that almost all fish in the world contain some form of contamination. That is why testing is carried out for the presence of more than 200 possible chemical substances. The most important are heavy metals, PCBs, and dioxins.
When these are found, the oil is purified using advanced techniques, making Pure MSC fish oil an extremely clean oil . It is therefore highly suitable for young children and pregnant women , who can benefit from the valuable brain building blocks but naturally want to avoid contaminants from fish.
It is justified that the Norwegians, nature lovers as they are, are proud of their land and seas, but also proud of the modern equipment with which this fish oil is produced.
Arctic Blue does not use plastic bottles for the liquid fish oil, but only glass bottles. We are therefore certain that no hormone-disrupting substances can migrate from the plastic into the fish oil.
Fresh
Freshness in fish oil means slightly different than in bread, but is comparable. Alongside purity, freshness is at least as important for an oil. This is because it reflects the condition of the sensitive Omega-3 fatty acids.
And it has to be good, because a rancid (oxidized) oil is not exactly healthy for you.
You can determine the freshness of an oil by smelling or tasting it. A fresh oil will never 'burp up', regurgitating with a fishy smell. You can also measure freshness very precisely in a laboratory and then express it as a number.
In our field, this number is called the oxidation value, sometimes also referred to as the Totox value . It stands for Total Oxidation Value. Our Norwegian partner and we measure this regularly.
Due to the use of fillet trimmings from fresh wild cod from cold northern seas, the oxidation value of our oil is exceptionally low.
In addition, Norway is known for its modern production facilities. The relatively short distance to Norway also contributes to the freshness of Arctic Blue Much other fish oil from sardines and anchovies comes from warm South America. Sometimes it even goes to China or North America first. So it takes quite a long time before it reaches the customer in Europe.
A very low oxidation value is therefore not only optimal for your body, but it also ensures the mild taste of the oil, allowing it to be used in yogurt or smoothies, or simply eaten straight from the spoon.
An oil whose bad taste is masked by strong artificial flavorings will never taste good.
If you use a different brand of fish oil (or algae oil), it is advisable to ask for its oxidation (totox) value. If they cannot or will not provide a laboratory analysis of the peroxide and anisidine values, you basically know enough already…
Naturally
Pure MSC fish oil exists only in a natural form. This is the so-called triglyceride form. Exactly the way fats occur in nature (in fish). Nature devised this because fats are most stable in this form.
Unstable fats, on the other hand, have several disadvantages. Precisely the reason why we would never want the non-natural ethyl ester.
Ethyl ester quality disadvantages (3x).
There is also a moral objection. If whole sardines and anchovies are used instead of fillet trimmings to concentrate fish oil, this is an incredible amount of fish that could otherwise have been used for humans or animals.
Moreover, this also happens primarily in places on the other side of the world.
So we prefer to leave these sardines and anchovies for the local fisherman or the dolphin, seabird, sea lion, and whale.
Conclusion
Concentrated fish oil based on ethyl esters or sardines/anchovies are not suitable at all. Arctic Blue and we are NEVER going to sell either.
