DSM, Evonik form omega-3 joint venture

Abstract

DSM and Evonik Industries are setting up a joint venture to make omega-3 fatty acids from natural marine algae for use in fish feed and pet food. The venture, called Veramaris, will spend $200 million to build an omega-3 fatty acid facility at an existing Evonik site in the U.S. It will go onstream in 2019. The firms have already made pilot-scale quantities of the oil at DSM’s facility in Kingstree, S.C. The new plant will turn out a “highly concentrated algal oil,” the partners say, using algae production expertise from DSM and industrial-scale fermentation know-how from Evonik. Omega-3 fatty acids are a family of polyunsaturated fats that include eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA) and docosahexaenoic acid (DHA). Initial output from the planned facility will meet about 15% of the farmed salmon industry’s demand for EPA and DHA, the two firms say. Fish use omega-3 for metabolic functions and as a cellular