Ocean Nutrition Canada Honours Wilmar International Limited for 2010 Most Significant Contribution to Human Health Award in the Omega-3 Sector

DARTMOUTH, Nova Scotia, March 28, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- Ocean Nutrition Canada Limited (ONC), the world's largest Omega-3 EPA/DHA solutions provider, and supplier of MEG-3(R) brand Omega-3 EPA/DHA (eicosapentaenoic acid/docosahexaenoic acid) ingredients, is pleased to announce that it recently presented Wilmar International Limited (Wilmar) with an award for 2010 Most Significant Contribution to Human Health in the Omega-3 Sector.

In December 2010, ONC announced that it entered into an exclusive long-term strategic agreement with Wilmar, based in Singapore. The collaboration resulted in the launch of Wilmar's new Arawana 3A+ premium cooking oil containing ONC's Omega-3 EPA/DHA ingredient. The new cooking oil contains high inclusion levels of Omega-3 in its leading and most widely distributed product - Arwana 3A+ premium cooking oil. With 130mg EPA/DHA per serving this product has very significant Omega-3 loadings, allowing Chinese consumers to easily bridge the nutritional gap with this fortified food product.

On March 12th in Anaheim, California, during the Natural Products Expo, ONC presented Wilmar with this recognition for its commitment to addressing the Omega-3 deficiency in the Chinese diet. Wilmar's commitment to increasing awareness of the importance of Omega-3 EPA/DHA, and to educating the Chinese consumers about the deficiency in their diet can be seen in their advertising and promotional activities including television campaigns, food education and cooking shows, road show promotions (over 30,000), print and online articles, as well as in-store and outdoor sampling displays around the country. They also have held academic and scientific symposia with international experts in the health and nutrition field to educate the medical and regulatory communities as well consumers about the significant health benefits of Omega-3 EPA and DHA.

"We are very honoured to have presented them with the award for Outstanding Contribution to Human Health." Robert Orr, Chairman of Ocean Nutrition Canada Limited, continued, "The commitment Wilmar has made to addressing the dietary Omega-3 EPA/DHA deficiency of the Chinese consumer, the research and development along with the outstanding efforts and financial commitment to educating the Chinese consumer about the importance of Omega-3 EPA/DHA in their diet is be commended."

"We are honored to be recognized by Ocean Nutrition Canada with this award. We are very proud to be able to produce Arawana 3A+ with high-quality MEG-3(R) Omega-3 EPA/DHA ingredients." Mr. Bo Chen, General Manager of Yihai Kerry continued, "Addressing the Omega-3 deficiency in the Chinese diet is extremely important to us and our product may potentially have a significant improvement on the health of Chinese consumers."

During the award ceremony, Adam Ismail, Executive Director of the Global Organization for EPA and DHA Omega (GOED), presented Wilmar with a plus-level membership certificate into the (GOED) trade association. "Arawana 3A+ is one of the more innovative products I have seen on the market. Incorporating EPA and DHA into staple food products is one of the best ways to establish these nutrients as a core fundamental component of human nutrition." Adam Ismail continued, "Which is why I am so pleased to see it being added to cooking oil in a country like China where per capita usage of oils is so high. I hope this can serve as a model for companies in other countries."

About Wilmar International Limited (Wilmar):

Wilmar International Limited, founded in 1991, is Asia's leading agribusiness group. It ranks amongst the largest listed companies by market capitalisation on the Singapore Exchange. Its business activities include oil palm cultivation, oilseeds crushing, edible oils refining, specialty fats, oleochemicals and biodiesel manufacturing, and grains processing. Headquartered in Singapore, Wilmar has over 300 manufacturing plants and an extensive distribution network covering China, India, Indonesia, and some 50 other countries to support a well-established processing and merchandising business. Wilmar also manufactures and distributes fertilizers and owns a fleet of vessels. The group is backed by a multi-national workforce of more than 80,000 people.

Over the years, Wilmar has established a resilient integrated agribusiness model that captures the entire value chain of the agricultural commodity processing business, from origination and processing to the branding, merchandising, and distribution of a wide range of agricultural products. Through scale, integration, and the logistical advantages of its business model, it is able to extract margins at every step of the value chain, resulting in significant operational synergies and cost efficiencies. For more information about Wilmar International, please visit http://www.wilmar-international.com.

About Ocean Nutrition Canada Limited (ONC):

Ocean Nutrition Canada Limited (ONC) is a privately held company, whose major shareholder is Clearwater Fine Foods Incorporated. Clearwater Fine Foods Incorporated is a diversified holding/investment company whose significant holdings include a controlling interest in Clearwater Seafood's Limited Partnership, the world's largest integrated shellfish harvester and processor.

ONC is the world's largest supplier of Omega-3 EPA/DHA ingredients from fish oil, marketed into the dietary supplement and food manufacturing markets. To date, MEG-3(R) ingredients have been included in over 94 billion servings of food and supplement products worldwide. For more information about ONC, please visit http://www.ocean-nutrition.com, and for information on the health benefits of Omega-3 EPA/DHA please visit http://www.meg-3.com.

About Omega-3:

Omega-3 is a family of essential fatty acids (EFA), including EPA (eicosapentaenoic acid), DHA (docosahexaenoic acid), and ALA (alpha-linolenic acid). Oily fish (such as sardines, anchovies, mackerel, and salmon) are the major known natural sources of Omega-3 EPA/DHA. ALA is found in plants, such as flax and chia. It is important to note that EPA and DHA are the primary contributors of the many health benefits associated with Omega-3. While the body can convert ALA into EPA/DHA, it does so very inefficiently (typically less than one percent), making it difficult to derive Omega-3-related health benefits from plant-sourced ALA. Furthermore, although Omega-3 EPA/DHA is important to overall good health, the human body is not able to produce sufficient quantities on its own, so supplementation is required, either by eating oily fish or foods fortified with Omega-3 EPA/DHA, or by taking fish oil supplements. Learn more about the health benefits of Omega-3 EPA/DHA at http://www.meg-3.com.

    
    For more information contact:
    Joanna Lane
    Ocean Nutrition Canada Ltd.
    Tel:  +1-902-480-3288
    Cell: +1-902-488-0141
    jlane@ocean-nutrition.com
    http://www.ocean-nutrition.com

SOURCE Ocean Nutrition Canada Ltd.