FISH LIVER OILS

Hokitika Guardian, 16 July 1940, Page 2

FISH LIVER OILS

NEW ZEALAND RESOURCES

(Per Press Association—Copyright)

WELLINGTON, July 14

Because of the enormous rise in the price of cocl liver oil and the increasing diiricidty of obtaining it since the war broke out the possibilities or meeting local needs by means of a tish liver oil industry based upon New Zealand's own resources are being investigated. The chief inspector or fisheries, Mr A. E. Heifford, said that a satisfactory substitute lor cod liver oil might be obtained from the groper or ling in New Zealand waters. To consider how far the Dominion’s needs might lie supplied locally, Mr Hefford said, a conference was held recently in Wellington. It was attended - by a number of departmental tesearcth chemists, experts in nutrition and food values and in the extraction and use of medicinal oils man .New Zealand fishes representatives of the Fisheries Department and ol : the Jxaritaue Products Society. Phis .society was one of the largest users ot cod liver in the Dominion, the dietitians maintained that the .uod oi .New Zealanders was seriously deficient in certain vitamins, particularly A and D, which were cunuinit'ii m nsh products. For this reason practically all babies and young children were given cod liver on. It was incorporated in special loods projjureu lor l'Kiintet cnnui'en, wilo comprised some oo per cent oi .ww .uuu eiitiuren. une potential source of fish oil /uaijiins, air ncno.u »aiu, was to ue lOniiu in rsew mini iresil waters .u ee.s, wincn were pemaps uio „0111 UiOiieSt nbll Ot 'tile fJOnilllioils .iveis aim stieanis. Last year more uian Lo.uvit/ re.s, nieiagmg dill in weigiit, uiiieh woii.u uootit Itido giiimna pi oil, weie mapped m the ooutniana acclimatisation uistrict. it was cm. mated tnat mt) toils a year could ue taKeii Ngom italic itilesnieie, .ilia an equal quantity fiom Juuie i>uokc. ' me.se quantities would yieia gaduns oi • oil. in tlie absence m cod i.ier oil, people should be encouraged to use com as a looustnn.

isveiy year Aew Zealand imported .mine oo.oco gallons oi cod diver oil uiiw lo,uoo ot other fish ous, Mr net.old said, and consumption nad shown a steady uicien.se. tiiice the beguiiiing oi tne war cod mcr oil prices mid risen from 4s a gallon to its u gasoil, and even in some quarters to iOs a ganon. Either groper or ling produced oil cousidoraoiy richer m .lie requisite vitamins tiian eod liver .41. One gallon of ling liver oil w r as as rich m iivamin A as to gallons and ..s mil in vitamin 0 as yj gafions of _od fiver oil. One gallon of groper diver oil was equal in vitamin A consent to Pigallons and in vitamin D content to mi gallons' of eod liver jil. Ling was better suited to oil production m that its liver was larger, mid that fishery offered greater possibilities of development. It would not be. expedient to intensify the groper fishery, which was at present over exploited in many p.aces.

it was estimated, Mr Hefford said, chat the fisheries could ( yield 22,030 gallons of lm.g oil and 1,100 gallons of groper ml. Either groer or , ling at this rate would supply 55 per cent of the present vitamin requirements. These supplies might well be supplemented by developing fisheries for die various shark and dogfish species, skates and rays, which had large livers! and would iv..dily yield a large proportion of oil. At present the only representative of this kind of fish used commercialy were skates and pike, or dogfish.