Omega Protein

Omega Protein Corporation

Company type	Public
Traded as	NYSE: OME
Industry	Fish products
Founded	1913
Headquarters	Houston, Texas
Revenue	$244 million USD(2013)
Number of employees	1150
Website	www.omegaproteininc.com

Omega Protein Corporation is an international nutritional product corporation headquartered in Houston, Texas. It is a leading integrated provider of specialty oils, essential fatty acids and specialty protein products. Omega Protein is North America's largest manufacturer of protein-rich specialty fish meal and organic fish solubles.

Omega Protein’s roots date back to 1913 founded in Reedville, Virginia. In the fall of 2014, the company released its inaugural Corporate Social Responsibility Report, formally articulating the company’s existing social and environmental efforts and future aspirations. Throughout their 100 years, Omega Protein has delivered quality ingredients that improve the nutritional integrity of food, supplements and animal feed to allow consumers and their families to live healthier lives with better nutrition.

Origin

Menhaden fishing is one of America's oldest commercial industries, dating back to the 1800s. In the early years of American history, menhaden fishing and processing was a very common sight along the Atlantic coastline. In 1850, D.D. Wells & Son founded the first factory for catching and processing menhaden. In 1878 John and Thomas Haynie began their first fish processing operation on their family’s property in Reedville, Virginia. The brothers would sell the processed menhaden fish oil, which was used for manufacturing and as a source of fuel. During the 1920s, the oil shifted markets due to the emergence of kerosene and petroleum as the dominant fuel sources. Through a series of mergers and name changes, the company that the Haynies founded in 1878 eventually became Omega Protein.

Expansion

• 1903- John A. Haynie Company becomes Haynie, Snow and Company
• 1913- Haynie, Snow and Company becomes Reedville Oil & Guano Company
• 1966- Expansion into the Gulf o fMexico with the opening of processing facilities in LA & MS
• 1968- Reedville Oil & Guano Company renames to Haynie Products, Inc.
• 1970- Haynie Products, Inc. becomes Zapata Haynie Corporation after merger with Zapata Oil
• 1994- Zapata Haynie Corporation renames to Zapata Protein
• 1997- Zapata Protein goes public
• 2002- Zapata Protein renames to Omega Protein
• 2010- Omega Protein acquires Cyvex Nutrition, Inc., a dietary supplement supplier
• 2011- Omega Protein acquires InCon Processing, L.L.C., a processor that uses molecular distillation technology

Growth

New research and technological innovations have allowed menhaden processing operations to improve on their abilities to use omega-3 oils to benefit human and animal nutrition needs.

Omega Protein first began its expansion into the high-end animal and human nutrition markets with the completion of the Health and Science Center in Reedville, VA on October 21, 2004. This manufacturing facility was developed to create ultra-refined versions of menhaden oil for application in food and high-end animal feed. In 2007, Omega Protein furthers its presence in the human nutrition industry by launching the OmegaPure Technology and Innovation Center (OPTIC) to develop and research new ways to integrate omega-3 fatty acids into food formulations, develop antioxidant and stabilization systems, and provide technical assistance to the processing of fish oils. Omega Protein has recently enhanced its presence in the human and animal nutrition markets through a series of strategic acquisitions. Its main subsidiary is Nutegrity, a nutritional supplement company headquartered in Irvine, California. Nutegrity was formed in 2013 by merging Omega Protein’s previous acquisitions. These include Cyvex Nutrition, a provider of botanical and fish oil-based dietary ingredients located in Irvine, California; InCon Processing, a toll processing facility for omega-3 products located in Batavia, Illinois; and Wisconsin Specialty Protein, a manufacturer of whey protein located in Reedsburg, Wisconsin with additional operations in Madison, Wisconsin. Nutegrity provides nutritional products derived from dairy, plant, and marine-based sources.

In 2014, Omega Protein acquired Bioriginal, a Saskatchewan based supplier of omega-3 oils with operations in Den Bommel, Netherlands, to further expand its presence in the nutrition market. Like Nutegrity, Bioriginal derives its omega-3 oils from both plant-based and marine sources .

Company operations

Headquarters- Houston, TX

Offices- Irvine, CA; Madison, WI; Saskatoon, Canada; Den Bommel the Netherlands

Processing- Abbeville, LA; Moss Point, MS; Reedville, VA; Batavia, IL; Reedsburg, WI

Research- Omega Protein Health & Science Center in Reedville, VA and OmegaPure Technology and Innovation Center (OPTIC) in Houston, TX

Omega Protein operates in several locations across the country. The company’s fisheries are crucial to coastal economies on both on the Atlantic and Gulf coasts. On the Atlantic Coast, Omega Protein maintains a facility in Reedville, Virginia, and on the Gulf Coast, the company operates in Abbeville, Louisiana and Moss Point, Mississippi.

Fishing Operations

Purse Seine Technique

1. Spotter Planes fly along the coast to identify schools of menhaden, and relay that information to fishing vessels on the water.
2. Fishing vessels arrive at the school of fish spotted by the plane. Smaller purse boats are deployed to collect the catch.
3. The two purse boats begin encircling the school of fish with a purse seine net.
4. The fish are then transferred from the net to refrigerated fish holds on the main vessel.
5. The vessels return to the dock where the caught fish are unloaded for processing.
6. Each step of preparation and production involves a system of quality check points for safety and quality assurance.

Vessel Monitoring Systems (VMSs) have been installed on 43 vessels in 4 different locations to monitor, survey and transmit data from vessels to shore. All marine products are 100% traceable from their source to consumer shelves.

All captains operating Omega Protein vessels are required to complete daily fishing reports for each catch. The report identifies the estimated number of fish caught, location of catch, weather at time of catch, as well as other details that are important for the fishery. The reports are also shared with government agencies such as the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration.

Atlantic fishery

Atlantic menhaden are harvested within the Chesapeake Bay and in the Mid-Atlantic waters. The menhaden reduction fishery is the largest commercial fishery on the East Coast. Menhaden are managed by the Atlantic States Marine Fisheries Commission (ASMFC), which is an interstate compact formed by an agreement with the 15 Atlantic Coast states .

Gulf

The Gulf menhaden are harvested along the coast of Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and parts of Florida. The Gulf menhaden have a shorter life span than their Atlantic counterparts. The menhaden are managed by the Gulf States Marine Fisheries Commission (GSMFC), which is a compact between the five Gulf states.

Product

Fish Meal

• Special Select
• Natural Nautic
• SeaLac

Fish Oil

• Virginia Prime
• OmegaEquis
• SeaCide
• OmegaPure
• Crude Oil

Fish Soluble

• OmegaGrow
• OmegaGrow Plus
• Neptune

Environmental Record

Awards

In 2008 Omega Protein receives certification from Friend of the Sea a non-profit, non-government organization that aims at conserving marine habitat. The certification provided by the organization is conducted through an onsite monitoring project to approve sustainability in fisheries and aquaculture. In 2009 Omega Protein received the Friend of the Sea Award for sustainability. The award is given to those whose target stocks cannot be considered overexploited, the company's fishing methods must not impact the seabed, and the company's fishing methods must not discard more than 8% in weight of their catch.

Issues

BP Oil Spill

The oil slick had an adverse effect on the Company’s ability to operate in the fishing grounds east of the Mississippi River Delta, near its Moss Point, Mississippi facility. Regulators closed areas to commercial fishing. The Company developed additional contingency response plans to move its vessels from Morgan City, Louisiana farther west to its Abbeville and Cameron facilities should regulators close a greater portion of the fishing grounds. On October 20, 2010 OMega Protein announced that it has to date received a total of $18.7 million in payments, net of fees, from the Gulf Coast Claims Facility (“GCCF”). The GCCF is administering funds paid by BP in connection with reimbursements for claims caused by the Deepwater Horizon disaster. .

2011 Collision and Sinking

Omega Protein reported that late in the evening on May 18, 2011, an Omega Protein vessel, the F/V SANDY POINT, was involved in a collision with a commercial cargo vessel, the EURUS LONDON, in Mississippi waters approximately eight miles south of Gulfport, Mississippi near Ship Island. As a result of the collision, the F/V SANDY POINT took on water and sank.At the time of the collision, 16crew members were aboard Omega Protein’s vessel. Authorities have accounted for 13 of Omega Protein’s crew members. A search and rescue effort was immediately deployed for the remaining 3 crew members. Mr. Joe von Rosenberg, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer at the time of the incident, stated “We are assisting the U.S. Coast Guard and the Mississippi Department of Marine Resources in the search for our remaining crew members. Our main concern at this time is for our missing 3 crew members and their families.”

External links

• Official website