BASF acquires omega-3 manufacturer

Ludwigshafen (IN) – BASF has announced the acquisition of Scottish omega-3 manufacturer Equateq, extending BASF’s portfolio of omega-3 products to include highly concentrated omega-3 fatty acids.

“Equateq’s technologies will enable us to customise fatty acid concentrates with variable ratios of EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid) and DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) at concentration levels of up to 99 per cent purity,” said Martin Widmann, senior vice president, BASF.

Equateq has a production site located on the Isle of Lewis in Scotland with 47 employees. Equateq will be integrated into BASF’s nutrition & health division by the end of 2012.

The value of omega-3 as a premium ingredient was reaffirmed recently by a new study from Columbia University Medical Center in New York. The study found evidence that consumption of omega-3 rich foods can reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s by lowering levels of plasma beta-amyloid implicated in the onset of the disease.

BASF said that it believes that highly concentrated omega-3 fatty acids are a global growing market, with increasing consumer awareness of the health benefits of omega-3 fuelling double-digit growth for omega-3 products in the years to come.

Source: Ingredients Network