5 WAYS MAREL IS CREATING A MORE SUSTAINABLE FISH INDUSTRY

5 ways Marel is creating a more sustainable fish industry.

Marel take their role in mitigating climate change very seriously and are fully committed to protecting the planet and preserving its resources.

Sustainability is at the core of their innovation process and embedded throughout their operations, enabling their customers, their investors and them to take sustainable food production to the next level.

The food industry faces many global challenges, including climate change, diet-related diseases, water scarcity, lack of food traceability, and food safety risks, to name a few. In a world where sustainable development is a necessity, food processors require solutions that meet the needs of present generations without compromising future generations.

Marel continuously monitor how their operations and the systems and solutions they provide affect society, economies, and the environment. Here are 5 ways that Marel are creating a more sustainable fish industry:

1. Minimising climate impact

The sustainable use of raw materials, water and energy, is a top priority for the fish processing industry. Throughout the entire fish processing value chain, Marel encourages and promotes the most sustainable use of resources to minimise environmental impact and prioritise environmental protection. They focus on building solutions that have the least impact on the environment and maximise the efficient use of resources, including raw materials, water, and energy.Knowing that reducing food waste, energy and water consumption significantly minimises their customers’ CO2 footprint during production, they created the FleXicut. The FleXicut is an advanced solution that optimises fillet utilisation in pin-bone removal, filleting and portioning. Raw material utilisation is maximised with X-ray pin-bone detection that intelligently determines the optimal cut configuration and water-jet cutters accurately cut as close to the pin-bones as possible using only a tablespoon of water per fillet. The FleXicut exemplifies Marel’s commitment to transform the way fish is processed more sustainably.

2. Ensuring food safety

Marel embraces their role as a company in the global fish industry by ensuring the highest food safety and quality standards. For over 40 years, Marel has been helping fish processors reduce processing time and increase automation, leading to improved food safety worldwide.

By automating tasks that are otherwise done manually across the fish production line, food safety risks are minimised by eliminating the chance of human contamination. Building equipment that is accessible and easy to clean is also one of the many ways that they ensure safe products for consumers.

Another is X-ray technology that enables fish processors to detect and reject foreign materials that can have devastating consequences for consumers and processors. Offering high levels of consistency, accuracy, and quality, this type of technology is far superior to the manual inspection processes that preceded them. A fine example of this is Marel’s SensorX—a proven industry-standard solution for bone detection that automatically finds bones and other hard contaminants in fish, enabling processors to deliver consistently safe, high-quality products.

3. Eliminating food waste

Marel believe that every gramme counts and decreasing food waste continues to be a big part of transforming the way fish is processed. They work towards decreasing food waste and increasing raw material utilisation through automation and digitalisation. Their goal is to maintain the highest possible food quality and drive greater overall efficiency and sustainability from catch to table by moving towards demand-driven production.

Simply put, automation reduces human error and increases optimal cutting, trimming, portioning, and packaging to reduce food waste. Marel’s range of automated fish processing machines, solutions, and services increase yield, utilise as much of the raw material as possible, and create valuable by-products that reduce food waste throughout the entire supply chain.

4. Catch to table traceability

Consumers demand full transparency and traceability from their food. Not only do they want to know the nutritional value of their fish, but they also want to know the origin and the safety standards involved in their journey from sea to supermarket. Traceability is an integral part of Marel’s innovation for developing solutions and software so that fish processors are equipped with the data needed to meet and exceed expectations.

Marel’s Innova Food Processing Software provides processors with full traceability of products throughout the entire value chain. This valuable information gives fish processors the ability to withdraw or recall products that have been identified as unsafe or incorrectly labelled, contributing directly to food security, increased efficiency, and improved nutrition for consumers around the globe.

5. Corporate initiatives

As an important step in their sustainability journey, Marel have committed to the Science Based Targets initiative to meet the goals of the Paris Agreement, aiming for carbon neutrality well before 2050.

In addition, Marel has been inspired by the UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) call to the private sector for corporate responsibility, transparency, and being a part of the solution, and they believe innovation is the primary way to make an impact and a meaningful contribution. They are focused on three of the SDGs: to improve food security and traceability (goal 2), support sustainable development in food production (goal 9) and ensure sustainable consumption and production patterns (goal 12).

Marel is adopting climate-related reporting as recommended by the Task Force on Climate-related Financial Disclosures (TCFD), giving them a powerful tool to understand and act on the risks and opportunities associated with climate change.

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