Advanced Technology to Add Value
and Eliminate Waste
At Nissui, we have perfected our technology for making maximum use of precious marine resources to help enhance product quality and lower prices.
Nissui, One of the World's Largest Distributors of Whitefish Surimi
Surimi made from whitefish is the main ingredient in many of our processed products, from chikuwa, processed fish cake with tube-like shape to fish sausage and kanikama imitation crab sticks, which we produce and distribute in Japan and around the world. Yearly volume handled comes to 45,000 tons. We source the whitefish, mainly Alaska pollack and other cod family species, caught in the Bering Sea and northern North America, and make the product in local processing plants.
We Process Fish in All Shapes and Sizes and Keep Waste to a Minimum
Surimi is produced by washing, soaking and grinding the meat left from the fish after the head, innards, bones and skin has been removed. This is done quickly while the fish is fresh, to make sure the surimi will be tasty.
Fish heads are removed by head cutting machines, after which the fish is moved along, backbone down, to equipment that slits the belly, removes the innards and removes the innards and the backbone. This is all done in one continuous operation, but it's hard to avoid cutting away too much meat near the head when the kidney is cut away. Processing fish of different sizes can also slow productivity.
Nissui has used principles of engineering and other disciplines to develop its own processing equipment. This equipment can automatically handle large volumes of fish of different sizes or hardness, which enhances productivity.
No Waste of Finite Resources
The best way of using marine resources sustainably is to use the least amount of raw material possible to produce the same volume of products. We took another look at the design of our processing apparatus and developed a machine that can cut in a curved line thanks to an adjustable blade. Adjusting the blade to handle differently-shaped fish allows the bone to be cut away without trimming away more meat than necessary.
Residue from the kidney near the head can cause an unpleasant smell and lower product quality. The new cut line reliably removes the kidney but leaves behind as much meat as possible, cutting close while moving at practicable speed.
Producing High-quality, Clean-looking Surimi
We also developed our own fish skinning apparatus. Fish skin is edible but when finished products contain dark bits, particularly from species like whitefish which have a dark peritoneum, they look unappealing and the dark part can be mistaken for human hair. It's very hard to remove only the dark tissue from the meat, however, and this problem has usually been dealt with by straining to remove any meat with dark tissue attached.
To save as much meat as possible, we altered the design of the fish skinning mechanism. We analyzed the direction in which the blade applies pressure, blade shape, strength and warping. After much testing, we developed a way of skinning the fish at the pre-processing stage, and we have shown our Group partners in Japan and abroad that it works well.
Nissui develops technologies and products to make optimal use of resources. We make every effort to enhance our products' quality and add more value to marine resources.
