Fish

Marel reached a significant milestone in 2021 by entering the tilapia industry with the innovative FilleXia. Thanks to its revolutionary filleting automation, processors no longer have to worry about the need for highly skilled workers, employee turnover, and production costs. Human impact and contamination risks are minimized, while raw material utilization and productivity are maximized. The result is a consistent and affordable tilapia product. 

The design and principle of the FilleXia was based on four generations of filleting equipment in salmon and our strong heritage of developing automated, reliable, and reputable salmon filleting solutions that deliver exceptional products and satisfied customers.  

Robotics are catapulting fish packing to an entirely new level of optimization and efficiency. 

The RoboBatcher Box combines state-of-the-art batching software with innovative robotic technology to pack fixed weight boxes so close to the target that giveaway is minimal. The plastic film applicator automatically places a plastic film in the box to prepare for ice. The IceDoser then automatically dispenses the ice based on the specific weight and shipping information found on the label of each box. Finally, a lid applicator automatically closes the box before palletizing.  

This level of automation benefits processors by not only significantly decreasing labor costs but also improving food safety, reducing giveaway, and virtually eliminating human error that may disrupt a production line. 

The new and improved version of the Salmon Deheader MS 2721 V features enhancements that deliver a higher yield, increased capacity, improved ease of use, and a more hygienic design.  

A new vision camera detects the fish’s optimal cutting position, and a new screen with a real-time position indicator guides the operator to the fish’s placement on the preloader. The machine’s cleaning has been improved by redesigning several of the key components exposed to water and fish parts. The design of the MS 2721 V also ensures good ergonomics and easy and safe operation.   

The Filleting Machine MS 2730 is one of our best-selling machines, and our innovative engineers, in partnership with our customers, have adapted it to become the world’s first automated kingfish filleting machine.  

Until now, kingfish filleting has been a physically demanding task that has relied heavily on the expertise and alertness of operators, and cost processors a significant amount of money, resources, and time. The Kingfish Filleting Machine MS 2730K automates this labor-intensive job by efficiently processing up to 25 fish per minute to deliver high-caliber fillets with improved yield and throughput. 

The need for automation continues to increase across the globe, and this is reflected in the number of ongoing projects for salmon retail pack slicing lines, such as our new Retail Pack Slicer I-Slice 3400. Launched in 2021, the I-Slice 3400 automatically, accurately, and efficiently slices and batches fixed weight retail packs of fresh salmon to fit every pack’s size and weight down to 50 g. The result is an exceptional pack presentation with minimal giveaway.  

The I-Slice 3400 meets consumer demands for new salmon products by making smaller package sizes and producing shorter slices with little to no human contact. With an option to upgrade to a multi-angle slicer with a cutting angle interval of 8°-72°, the accuracy and flexibility of the I-Slice 3400 are unmatched.  

Coinrefri SRL, one of Peru’s leading frozen fish exporters, invested in Marel solutions to diversify their product offerings and increase the value of their end products distributed to the retail and hotel, restaurant, and catering sectors. With a steady increase in demand since 2016, Coinrefri invested in equipment from Marel’s grading, batching and weighing, and portioning lines to automate the processing and final packing operations of the Paita and Tacna plants. 

 “The COVID-19 pandemic has strengthened demand for ready-to-eat and ready-to-cook products and portions of fixed weight. We needed to become more efficient in the portion cutting process,” says General Manager, Francisco Takahashi Iguchi.  

At the Paita plant, where giant squid, hake, scallops, and mahi mahi are processed, the needs were in secondary processing and packaging, the agility of the lines, and control of giveaway. Marel’s SmartLine Grader, two Compact Graders, and a TargetBatcher were installed, in addition to bench scales and checkweighers with metal detection. At the Tacna plant, where trout from Lake Titicaca is processed, demands arose at the beginning of the line in the primary processing of fresh fish. 

Búlandstindur, located in East Iceland, is one of few fish processors in the country that processes both whitefish and farmed salmon. With the recent installation of a whole fish grader for farmed salmon, they are processing 90-120 tons per day and packing up to 20 boxes per minute, while Innova Food Processing Software provides traceability.  

Elis Gretarsson, General Manager at Búlandstindur, says that this new process solution has revolutionized the factory, especially by automating grading and packing. “With this new processing line, the toughest and most monotonous jobs in salmon have been eliminated, and jobs have developed into monitoring the processing and system,” says Gretarsson.  

C.Vale is a prominent player in the food industry and one of the largest tilapia processors in Brazil. With the recent purchase of Marel’s newest solution FilleXia, C.Vale is automating the filleting of tilapia with a focus on the quality of byproducts such as belly-meat recovery. Innova software enables tracking of the raw material from receiving to packing to improve quality in the entire value chain.  

Together, this high level of innovation and automation ensures optimal use of raw material, less water usage, lower CO₂ emissions, and data collection to measure progress. It also increases C.Vale’s flexibility to handle both fresh and frozen products.  

Marel and C.Vale share similar values and commitment to sustainability, animal wellbeing, and food safety, which tightens their partnership as they collaborate. “Our co-operation with Marel enhances our commitment to sustainability where we put focus on optimal use of natural resources,” says Alfredo Lang, CEO of C.Vale. 

In recent years, Icelandic fish processor Skinney-Thinganes has invested considerably in Marel solutions to advance the technological development of the company’s facility with both equipment and software. In April 2021, the catfish processor invested in a SensorX with infeed, a RoboBatcher Box, and an automated packing line. Innova software connects all systems centrally and gives managers an overview and control of the processing.  

“We are at the beginning of a technological revolution, and people are realizing—bearing in mind that we are on the threshold of the fourth industrial revolution and automation—that we need to rethink catfish processing and such investments are likely to start that journey,” says Strategic Assistant to the CEO at Skinney-Thinganes, Gudmundur H. Gunnarsson.  

Gunnarsson adds that with the recent long-term investments in Marel processing equipment that covers the entire value chain, Skinney-Thinganes is increasing productivity. “It is now possible to process higher quantities and a more diverse range of products efficiently. The ideology is not only to increase quantity but also to increase the value per kilogram because, as we know, the resource is limited,” he said.  

An integral part of the increase in automation and efficiency of the catfish processing facility has been the close collaboration between Skinney-Thinganes and Marel to further develop new technologies for the industry. “Starting this journey has in fact opened up endless new opportunities, and for this to be successful, it is crucial that the machine operators work closely with Marel on the equipment development,” says Gunnarsson.  

For more than 40 years, Marel has been helping fish processors reduce processing time and increase automation, leading to improved food safety worldwide. By automating tasks that are otherwise done manually across the fish production line, food safety risks are minimized by eliminating the chance of human contamination. Building equipment that is accessible and easy to clean is also one of the many ways that we ensure safe products for consumers. 

Another is X-ray technology that enables fish processors to detect and reject foreign materials. Offering high levels of consistency, accuracy, and quality, this type of technology is far superior to the manual inspection processes that preceded them. A fine example of this is Marel’s SensorX—a proven industry-standard solution for bone detection that automatically finds bones and other hard contaminants in fish, enabling processors to deliver consistently safe, high-quality products. 

We believe that every gram counts, and decreasing food waste is essential to ensuring sustainable fish processing. We work toward decreasing waste and increasing raw material utilization through automation and digitalization. Our goal is to maintain the highest possible food quality and drive greater overall efficiency and sustainability from catch to table by moving toward demand-driven production. 

Simply put, automation reduces human error and increases optimal cutting, trimming, portioning, and packaging to reduce food waste. Our range of automated fish processing machines, solutions, and services increase yield, utilize as much raw material as possible, and create valuable byproducts that reduce food waste throughout the entire supply chain.