The agreement will be seen as a further boost for the Canadian company, which has been building its brand for the past 11 months on a global basis. Other coups have included the use and branding of Meg-3 in Danone's CardiaVia yogurt in Canada, and the introduction of an omega-3 milk by Lark Dairy in Hong Kong which was said in October to be outselling its regular milk by two-to-one.
ONC set up operations in Australia in June 2005 in a bid to better target the functional food market in Australia and New Zealand.
"..We have built up a sizeable business for both our fish oils into fish oil capsules and our microencapsulated omega-3 powder as healthy food ingredients for products in Australia," said Robert Orr, president and CEO at the time.
Australia does not have a dietary supplements category; health products are regulated either as pharmaceutical drugs or as complementary medicines.
YourHealth Group launched its enteric-coated omega-3 capsules directed specifically at cardiovascular health in 2005. The enteric coating is said to ensure that the capsule moves through the stomach intact, to be better metabolized by the small intestine.
YourHealth managing director Menno Veeneklaas said that using the Meg-3 brand "simplifies the quality story we want to tell".
"It's early days, but the results have been positive. Our Meg-3 fish oil products are the best sellers in our range."