12-Dec-2023

Emeraude at the forefront of product innovation at sea

Over the past few years, substantial progress in product development has occurred aboard the Emeraude trawler. Equipped with cutting-edge processing capabilities, the vessel has been actively supplying a range of fish products directly to supermarkets and various retail outlets. The vessel is, in fact, a large fish factory at sea.

Emeraude has one of the most advanced production lines known today for processing cod, haddock, and saithe at sea. The vessel’s captain, Björn Valur Gíslason, says the production capabilities on board have enabled the ship to adjust quickly to changes in demand as well as to develop new products.

“In addition to producing traditional fillets with skin and bone, or boneless fillets with or without skin, we cut fillets into all kinds of pieces and portions for different packages. We put a lot of emphasis on producing loose-frozen cod loin, where each piece is about 150g, packed in airtight packaging, and sold like that in stores. In addition, we have processed cod pieces in 1kg packaging, which is also shipped directly to stores. However, we have done less of that in recent years and have focused more on portions in airtight packaging, which consumers seem very happy with,” says Gíslason.

Emeraude, built in 2018 and operated from Saint-Malo, produces fillets in such a way that they are packed like regular fillets with a plastic interlayer or what is their specialisation, cut fillets in small pieces where each piece is packed individually in small plastic envelopes marked with the ship, ready for retail sales. According to Gíslason, the vessel can produce almost anything the consumer requests. All the different fish portions and cuts are made with the FleXicut machine from Marel on board the ship.

Björn Valur Gíslason

Developing new products right from the start

“We have been developing new products right from the start. As an example, we have experimented with boneless fillets with skin, which is not commonly done at sea, boneless fillets with the skin but without the belly flap, skinless fillets cut lengthwise, and now we are experimenting with cutting fillets into portions with skin, we cut them into pieces of the same size and make boneless fillets, tails, mid cuts and loins. Some of this production has gone no further than demonstrating that we can produce the product, while others are in continuous production on the vessel. It is also important for us to offer buyers a product they may not have seen before and thus take the initiative in product development and respond to specific requests. During a normal fishing trip, like the one we are about to end now, we made fish products with 63 different product numbers from 11 fish species, as well as fishmeal and fish oil. As far as I know, no ship fishing in the North Atlantic Ocean is doing anything comparable to this,” says Gíslason.

*Cod fillets in 1kg packaging produced on board Emeraude and shipped directly to stores.*

Much of what Emeraude is producing today was previously done on an older ship operated from Saint-Malo, all by hand and without the advanced technology on board the newer vessel. Gíslason says the vessel has built on existing knowledge and experience but benefitted from new technology. “What we are doing at Emeraude is, therefore, based to a considerable extent on company knowledge and experience in Saint-Malo and demands from the existing markets. We have built on this tradition, but with the new capabilities, we believe we have produced better products, increased quality, improved utilisation, and improved product presentation to respond to our customer's expectations. As well as developing new products and attracting new customers,” says Gíslason.

*All the different fish portions and cuts are made with the FleXicut machine from Marel on board the ship.*

Able to meet increased demand during the pandemic

During the Covid-19 pandemic, significant changes appeared in consumer behaviour when restaurants, school canteens and workplaces were closed. During this period of high product demand from households, the most substantial part of the cod production aboard Emeraude was boneless portions, about 80%. This meant the vessel could quickly adjust to increased demand for these products while other ships could not produce comparable products.

“Fishing and working at sea, in general, are completely different from what they used to be. Much more emphasis is now placed on production, and fishing is now more organised and controlled so that the best ingredients come on board during each trip, which are then produced to maximise the value of each kilo,” says Gíslason.

Emeraude is operated by Compagnie des Pêches Saint-Malo, which jointly owns the vessel with Euronor. Both companies are Alda Seafood affiliates.

Emeraude is experimenting with cutting fillets into portions with skin.