NEW TECH FOODS

Germany-based cultivated fish producer Bluu is entering new markets beyond food as it looks to supply high-value marine ingredients to the health and beauty sectors.

The company, known for its Bluu Seafood brand, plans to use its proprietary Bluu Zone platform to scale production of cultivated salmonid cells for applications in skincare and health products.

The technology enables controlled cultivation of salmonid cells to create bio-identical ingredients without animal slaughter or environmental impact, according to the company.

Bluu will structure its activities under three brands as it moves towards commercialisation:

• Bluu Skincare, offering pharmaceutical-grade salmonid-based ingredients for skincare

• Bluu Health, supplying a multi-benefit marine bioproduct

• Bluu Seafood, providing culinary ingredients from cultivated salmon and trout

The company said demand for traceable and ethically produced ingredients is increasing in both the beauty and health sectors. Salmonid-derived actives are valued for benefits such as anti-ageing and skin regeneration, but adoption has been limited due to sourcing concerns, which Bluu says its cell-cultivation approach addresses.

Sebastian Rakers, co-founder and CEO of Bluu, said: “It is a rare thing to be able to say that we can now outperform nature in creating something perfectly natural. At a cellular level, our cultivated fish products are no different from anything derived from wild-caught or farmed salmon – but, unlike those, they are perfectly traceable and sustainable, without artificial flavours or antibiotics, and without any contamination by micro-plastics. This level of purity combined with reliable sourcing has proven to be very interesting to our partners in Beauty and Health.”

Bluu is working with beauty-industry partners on feasibility and formulation studies to evaluate performance and scalability. The company’s food products, meanwhile, await regulatory approval in the US and EU.

With new business lines in skincare, health and seafood, Bluu says it aims to scale production of traceable, sustainable marine ingredients and support alternatives to conventional fishing and aquaculture.