Kuopio, Finland-based Kalavapriikki and Karkkila, Finland-headquartered food-tech company Hailia Nordic have teamed up to create a pulled rainbow trout product for exclusive distribution through Finnish retailer S Group.
The product is made from fish-filleting sidestreams, which might otherwise be wasted or converted into lower-valued products such as aquafeed ingredients or fish oil production, according to Hailia.
“We are committed to driving the blue food revolution and redefining seafood industry practices to operate within planetary boundaries while improving profitability. However, no company can do this alone,” Hailia CEO Michaela Lindström said in a press release. “Through this partnership with S Group and Kalavapriikki, we can provide a very strong proof of concept for this entire circular concept. The food produced with Hailia’s patent-pending technology ticks all the boxes required by industrial food producers, including sufficient production capacity to meet the needs of a major retail chain like S Group.”
S Group operates 500 supermarkets in Finland and holds a 48 percent share of Finland’s grocery market. It also has outlets in Estonia.
The product named Nyhtökirjolohi, meaning “pulled rainbow trout,” launched under S Group’s Kotimaista private label in early September 2024.
“Today’s consumers want good taste and sustainability in the same package. There is strong demand for affordable fish products for everyday use, and Hailia’s innovation allows us to answer that demand even better than before. The pulled rainbow trout is an excellent addition to our own product line, as the product seamlessly combines good taste, domesticity, ease, and affordability,” S Group Sales Manager Mikko Kovalainen said.
Hailia’s technology uses discarded parts from the processing of Kalavapriikki’s farmed rainbow trout – including frames, heads, and fins – and converts them into a product with the texture of cooked fish fillet, according to the company. Kalavapriikki CEO Jari Korhonen said the innovation will help it improve profitability, as products used for human consumption sell for 10 to 15 times more than those used for other industrial uses. It also provides consumers with a new and interesting seafood product with a low carbon footprint, Korhonen said.
“Fish has disappeared from the dinner tables of many urban people and young families even though research shows that consumers would like to eat more fish. We are passionate about answering this challenge, because we want to bring domestic fish back into Finnish people’s everyday diet,” Korhonen said. “This new product allows us to make more food out of the same raw material, which is also good for the climate and environment.”
Hailia said the processing techniques used to create the pulled rainbow trout can be applied to other fish as well, allowing producers to significantly improve their profitability and sustainability.
“Hailia’s ambition is to establish similar partnerships internationally and to license its unique technology to fish processing companies,” Lindström said.
Hailia is in the midst of a capital fundraising round, scheduled to close later in 2024.
In April 2024, Hailia won the World Food Innovation Award for best technology, and the company was listed as one of the 30 most interesting circular economy solutions for nature by the World Circular Economy Forum.
