Ålesund/Miami, November 1st, 2019
Atlantic Sapphire AS (“Atlantic Sapphire”, ASA-ME) and Hofseth Biocare ASA (“HBC”; OSE:HBC) announce today the signing of a Letter of Intent to establish a joint venture in Miami, Florida, USA (the “JV”). The intention of the JV is to build and operate a facility in Miami, FL to produce valuable by-products from salmon off-cuts supplied by Atlantic Sapphire. HBC’s proprietary intellectual property will be leveraged to produce refined products such as salmon oil, proteins and calcium products for the feed, pet and human consumption market.
- “Utilizing the whole fish has been our vision since we founded HBC in 2009 and with our plants in Norway now running at stable, high volumes, a joint venture with Atlantic Sapphire is a right step in the direction of being a global producer of nutrition from fish off-cuts. Over the last couple of years, we have built unique IPR and competence ready to be applied both in different parts of the world and on different species,” Roger Hofseth, CEO of HBC, said.
- “Refining Atlantic Sapphire salmon off-cuts on-site into high quality products ensures that 100% of Atlantic Sapphire salmon is processed into value-added products. This development aligns with Atlantic Sapphire’s vertical integration and sustainability strategy. We see a large potential in developing the US market”, said Johan Andreassen, CEO of Atlantic Sapphire.
Atlantic Sapphire and HBC aim to enter into a definitive agreement in Q1 2020, begin limited production in Q4, 2020 and increase output once Atlantic Sapphire begins 20,000t (HOG) annual production.
For further information, please contact:
Jon Olav Ødegård, CFO of Hofseth BioCare ASA
E-mail: joo@hofsethbiocare.no
Karl Øystein Øyehaug
Finance Director, Atlantic Sapphire AS
E-mail: investorrelations@atlanticsapphire.com
About Atlantic Sapphire AS
Atlantic Sapphire is pioneering BluehouseTM (land-raised) salmon farming, locally, and transforming protein production, globally. Atlantic Sapphire has been operating its innovation center in Langsand, Denmark since 2011 with a strong focus on R&D and innovation to equip the company with technology and procedures that enables the company to commercially scale up production in end markets close to the consumer.
In the US, the company has since 2010 worked to identify and permit the ideal location for BluehouseTM farming in Miami, Florida. The company is well underway with construction of its phase 1 build out which is projected to harvest approximately 10,000 tons of salmon annually, beginning in Q3, 2020. The company has also secured the key US water permits to produce up to 90,000 tons onsite, and a targeted harvest volume in 2031 of 220,000 tons.
About Hofseth BioCare ASA:
HBC is a Norwegian biotech company that develops high-value ingredients and finished products. Ingredients are further developed into discovery and pre-clinical studies in multiple clinics and university research labs in several countries. Lead clinical and pre-clinical candidates are development towards a Gastro-Intestinal (GI) Protective Medical Food, Medical Food to help treat age-related Sarcopenia, and future phase 1 studies on treatment of Anemia and NEC-IBS with Salmon Protein Hydrolysate fractions.
The company is founded on the core values of sustainability, traceability and optimal utilization of natural resources. Through an innovative hydrolysis technology, HBC can preserve the quality of lipids, proteins and calcium from fresh salmon off-cuts. Hofseth BioCare's headquarters are in Ålesund, Norway with branches in Oslo, Chicago, Mumbai, Palo Alto and Tokyo.
HBC is listed on Oslo Stock Exchange Axess list with ticker "HBC". More information about Hofseth BioCare at hofsethbiocare.com and facebook.com/hofsethbiocare
This information is subject to the disclosure requirements pursuant to Section 5-12 the Norwegian Securities Trading Act