Revolutionary Whitefish Pinbone Removal Line
Valka has developed a new, revolutionary pinbone removal technology for whitefish in co-operation with Icelandic Fish Processing leader HB Grandi. The new line will be installed at HB Grandi's facilities to automatically remove pinbones from redfish fillets, reports www.megafishnet.com with reference to Valka.
HB Grandi has signed an agreement with Valka for the purchase of a new automatic pinbone removal line. This innovative new processing line has been in joint development at the two companies for over two years with the support of the AVS Research Fund.
HB Grandi is one of the largest fishing companies in Iceland, catching and processing both ground fish and pelagic fish. The company is at the forefront of utilising technological advancement in the fishing industry. The agreement with Valka is in line with the company's policy of utilizing the latest technology available to enhance its fish processing procedures and maintain its careful utilization of natural resources. With over 700 employees, HB Grandi sells its products worldwide, with an emphasis on Europe, North America and Asia
HB Grandi will use the processing line to remove pinbones automatically from redfish fillets. The line delivers far better yield than possible with manual cutting. The future goal is to use this new technology for pinbone removal in other ground fish species such as cod, haddock and pollock.
"Increasingly, our customers call for boneless fish products. Meeting this demand correlates perfectly with our policy of onsite value added processing to increase the price we receive for our products," explains Eggert Benedikt Guðmundsson, CEO of HB Grandi. "It has been a great pleasure to partner with Valka on this project. The two companies have worked closely together over the years to develop and implement new hardware and software technologies for our ground fish processing division, a cooperation that has resulted in a significant rationalisation in our operations."
Valka has already applied for a patent for the pinbone removal technology and the new line is scheduled to be up and running at HB Grandi's facilities in Iceland within the year. "This is a very significant step in our operations," explains Helgi Hjálmarsson CEO of Valka. "As our goal is to become one of the leading providers of fish processing systems that increase the competitiveness of our customers with increased automation as well as better yield and utilisation of raw materials."