Seafood and fish are the primary sources of omega-3s, and the demand is fulfilled through increased fishing activities. Learn what the rising demand for these healthy fats implies on the limited marine resources and the best solutions to make sustainable omega-3s.
What Are Omega-3 Fatty Acids?
Omega-3 fatty acids are healthy fats commonly found in fish and seafood like mackerel, salmon and shrimp. These good fats support the body in many ways. Studies show they can reduce the risk of Alzheimer’s disease, cancer, heart illnesses and other chronic conditions. They can also improve cognition, balance women’s hormonal levels to regulate their mood and improve mental health.
Despite their crucial functions to health, the body can’t synthesize enough of these healthy oils to support overall function, making diet the only method for supplementation.
The three most abundant types of omega-3s in your diet are docosahexaenoic acid (DHA) and eicosapentaenoic acid (EPA), which are sourced from fish and seafood and alpha-linolenic acid (ALA) that comes from plants.
Here’s a list of fatty fish and their DHA and EPA content per 3-ounce serving:
- Mackerel (2 grams)
- Salmon (1.7 grams)
- Herring (1.3 grams)
- Sardines (0.8 grams)
- Anchovies (1.2 grams)
- Whitefish (1.1 grams)
- Tuna (1 gram)
- Halibut (0.89 grams)
Experts recommend eating fatty fish once or twice weekly for optimum heart health. But if you’re a vegan or are allergic to fish and seafood, plants can be alternative sources of ALA. Consider adding these options to your diet.
- Algae oil
- Chia seeds
- Edamame
- Flaxseed oil
- Soybean oil
- Canola oil
- Walnuts
The life-changing benefit of omega-3 fatty acids is seen in heart health by normalizing triglyceride levels. It’s widely known that heart disease is one of the leading causes of fatality in the country, with one in every five deaths attributed to it.
Blood that carries too much triglyceride increases the possibility of atherosclerosis and, consequently, the risk of stroke and heart disease. Adding omega-3 choices to your diet can keep your heart in good shape.
The Growing Demand
Due to the impressive and sought-after benefits of omega-3s, the demand is soaring. The industry’s market value was $2.25 billion in 2021 and is expected to reach a whopping $4.48 billion by 2030. The factors driving the growth are the following.
1. Increased Awareness of Omega-3 Health Benefits
More people are recognizing the powerful impact of these healthy fats on health, especially for many Americans with a high probability of heart disease.
2. Intensified Interest in Functional Foods
Fish and seafood — the primary sources of omega-3s — belong to a class of highly nutritious foods called functional foods. They possess robust health benefits that can protect you from cardiovascular events like stroke and heart attacks, nutritional deficiencies, and other ailments.
3. Expanding Supplement Market
The market for omega-3 supplements is broadening, inflating the demand. While it’s good news that Americans are becoming health conscious, the shift strains the marine ecosystems and fish stocks due to the high demand and low supply dynamic. Overfishing, bycatch and inappropriate aquaculture practices can rapidly deplete the main source of omega-3s, creating a problematic future.
Sustainable Solutions for Omega-3 Production and Consumption
The key to sustenance is to make sustainable omega-3s to balance consumption with appropriate use of resources. Plant-based alternatives, responsible fish farming techniques and diverse diets can help iron out the overwhelming demand problem.
1. Encourage Dietary Diversity
If you take omega-3s regularly as part of your heart-healthy diet, diversifying your nutritional supply can boost sustainability. Don’t just rely on fish and seafood, but try plant sources and supplements if they’re safe for you.
If you opt for plant sources such as nuts, kidney beans and Brussels sprouts, you ideally want to obtain them from your nearby farmers market. You’ll champion sustainability by bolstering its benefits outside of omega-3s, like making meal preparation environmentally friendly through local produce. This simple farm-to-table move can support sustainability in omega-3 plant sources.
You can promote a balanced diet by having both animal and plant alternatives. At large, it can help manage the limited resources and prevent the fish in the ocean from running out.
2. Use Plant-Based Omega-3 Alternatives
You can only diversify your healthy fat sources by getting them from plants. Here are your best alternatives for sustainable omega-3s.
- Chia seeds: One ounce has 5,000 mg of ALA
- Brussels sprouts: Half cup has 44 mg of ALA
- Algal oil: Supplements provide 400–500 mg of combined DHA and EPA
- Hemp seed: Three tablespoons contain 2,600 mg of ALA
- Walnuts: One serving has 2,570 mg of ALA
- Flaxseed: One tablespoon has 2,350 of ALA
- Perilla oil: One tablespoon has 9,000 mg of ALA
3. Optimize Omega-3 Production
By leveraging technology, experts can develop solutions to optimize the production of omega-3 fatty acids. Two promising sources are microalgae and environmental bacteria.
With the right cultivation conditions — that include temperature, nutrient content, salinity, PH, light, hormones and vitamins — microalgae can grow and be an excellent source of EPA and DHA. The key to making this a success is choosing the suitable strains of microalgae that are non-pathogenic, non-toxic, can multiply rapidly and possess high omega-3 fatty acid content.
Meanwhile, experts in Australia are eyeing soil bacteria for sustainable omega-3s to alleviate the impact of overfishing. Researchers can create omega-3 oils from wild bacterial extractsthrough advanced precision fermentation. If the final tests on its benefits and safety deliver an optimistic result, it can significantly lift the pressure off of marine ecosystems.
4. Make Aquaculture Practices Sustainable
It’s hard to move away from the conventional sources of omega-3s, so people will continue to rely on the ocean’s fish stocks. Making fishing activities sustainable — such as restricting the amount of fish caught within the day, choosing fishing gear with a larger mesh size to avoid bycatch and not using wild fish for feed — can make a difference in how people use resources. These measures can help balance between fish populations and fishing.
5. Educate Consumers to Contribute to Sustainability
You can instigate positive change by teaching and encouraging others to do their share of sustainable responsibilities. Whether correcting damaging fishing practices or entirely depending on marine life, the correct information is crucial to make people aware of what they can contribute to conserving the resources.
Sustainability Is Key to Meeting the Rising Demand for Omega-3s
Consuming omega-3 fatty acids through fish, seafood, plant oils or supplements has fantastic health benefits. However, people’s heavy reliance on marine sources creates an imbalance between fishing activities and the fish population. If this continues, a time could come when marine life will be exhausted and fishermen won’t catch anything.
Finally, nutritional demands can be met without causing too much damage to the marine ecosystems through sustainable omega-3s. By turning to plants, diversifying the diet and using technology to extract healthy oils from cultivated bacteria and microalgae. All so people can expend resources wisely.
