Norway’s Pharma Marine AS, a leader in the production of premium quality fish oils and omega-3 concepts, and Healthy Directions, a direct-to-consumer nutritional supplement retailer and wholly-owned subsidiary of Helen of Troy Limited (NASDAQ: HELE), have launched the sustainably sourced supplement, Dr. Williams CodMarine® Oil, for the first time in North America. The omega-3 sources in the oil product are fully traceable to sustainable and well-managed Marine Stewardship Council (MSC) certified fisheries. The MSC is the world’s most recognized certification program for sustainable, wild-caught seafood.

Pharma Marine’s CodMarine Omega-3 Fish Oil

MSC certification underscores Pharma Marine’s core values of caring for natural resources and people in a responsible and sustainable manner and supporting healthy oceans. Based on the west coast of Norway near a region where marine oil production dates back more than 130 years, Pharma Marine, an innovator in marine lipids, recently expanded its technologically advanced facility to enable the increased production of premium quality EPA and DHA products from fresh or frozen wild-caught fish. Pharma Marine’s sustainably sourced fish oil product, CodMarine, is traceable to MSC certified fisheries including North East Arctic cod, haddock and saithe.

Leif Kjetil Gjendemsjo, owner of Pharma Marine, said, "We are proud to introduce our sustainably sourced CodMarine product to the U.S. market and help consumers to make a difference and contribute to the health of the world’s oceans. The blue MSC ecolabel on each bottle provides assurance that there is complete traceability of CodMarine fish oil to sustainable and well-managed fisheries."

Healthy Directions

Pharma Marine’s CodMarine Omega-3 Fish Oil is available in the U.S. through Healthy Directions’ Dr. Williams brand. In line with Healthy Directions’ mission of helping people to lead healthier lives through the core values of responsibility, integrity, and continuous innovation, Dr. Williams has added CodMarine Oil to his product line to offer a sustainable omega-3 fish oil solution to his customers. The expanded line of sustainably sourced supplements offers options to support cardiovascular and other health benefits.

Connie Hallquist, President of Healthy Directions, said, "We are pleased to offer Dr. Williams’ CodMarine Oil to the U.S. market as we work to ensure we are providing innovative and sustainable solutions for consumers. The blue MSC ecolabel enables consumers to make a difference by choosing fish oil that can be traced back to a sustainable fishery."

MSC certification ensures traceability

The MSC maintains two global standards, one for evaluating the sustainability of fisheries and one for ensuring that seafood products carrying the blue MSC ecolabel are traceable to MSC certified fisheries. To ensure traceability through every step in the chain, Pharma Marine earned MSC Chain of Custody certification, which provides assurance that MSC certified seafood is not mixed with or substituted for non-certified seafood. MSC certification also ensures that seafood products that bear the blue MSC ecolabel can be traced back to a fishery that has been certified as sustainable and well managed against the global, science based MSC Fishery Standard.

"We congratulate Healthy Directions and Pharma Marine on the introduction of the sustainably sourced CodMarine fish oil supplement product to the U.S. market," said Michael Griff, MSC senior commercial manager, Americas. "By looking for and choosing the blue MSC ecolabel, consumers are able to contribute to the health of the world’s oceans and safeguard seafood supplies for this and future generations."