Fuji said the decision was informed by, “better product uniformity, operational efficiency and ease of expansion” at its Swedish facility that used the same enclosed bio-system as its Hawaiian operation albeit with different technology.
But it said it may conduct ongoing astaxanthin research from Hawaii.
BioReal managing director Ake Lignell told NutraIngredients Fuji had decided the Hawaiian plant’s outdoor, solar-reliant system could not match the indoor system of its Swedish operation, and so made the call to put the Hawaiian plant, “on standby”.
Hew said the bulk of Fuji’s astaxanthin output had been produced in Sweden for the past 12 months, due to, “the more reliable quality that could be achieved in our indoor domes under artificial light.”
“Consolidating operations into one of the two technologies would avoid duplication of effort and achieve operational efficiency,” Fuji said.
“One of the reasons the Swedish facility was chosen as the surviving technology was because of its ease of expansion. It is modular and can be expanded rapidly to accommodate the continued growth of the natural astaxanthin market.”
The Swedish facility, which began production in 1994, has already undergone one expansion and another is planned, which Lignell said could deliver reductions in the current spot-price of €400 per kilogram for 5% astaxanthin delivered from the algae biomass.
The Swedish operation produces several tonnes of astaxanthin per year.
Fuji/BioReal sources its AstaREAL-branded astaxanthin from the algae form, Haematococcus pluvialis.
Mitsunori Nishida, president and chief executive odfficer of Fuji Chemical said, "Fuji's commitment to the production and sale of natural astaxanthin is long term and our goal is to achieve excellence. We have sponsored 49 published astaxanthin research studies to date which demonstrates this commitment in establishing the astaxanthin market."