Some dietary supplement brands proclaim that their ingredients are created using ingredients that are sustainably sourced. Other brands are doing their part to address the plastic problem that defines the packaging in just about all supplements bottles.
Youtheory, a California-based brand recently acquired by Canada’s largest supplements company, Jamieson Wellness, has threaded the needle on both accounts. Its Ocean Friendly Omega, rolled out at Natural Products Expo West in Anaheim in March 2023, is a bellwether product development success story that points to a new direction around providing sustainable nutrition that consumers can feel good about.
The story begins with omega-3s, which are traditionally sourced from fish. But three years—going on four—of sub-par fish harvests has led to the price rising for fish.
Plant sources are available but flaxseed converts to EPA and DHA at only 60% and 25% (at most), respectively, while echium oil converts at 50% and 25%, respectively. A unique shout-out should go to ahiflower, which may provide DHA to blood and tissues at a rate similar to DHA and faster than flaxseed oil despite no differences in DHA levels, thanks to its omega-3 SDA content that converts and deploys into DHA. Ahiflower has also been shown to efficiently boost circulating EPA in humans.
And that brings us to algae—nature’s miraculous, single-celled chemical factory. First grown in ponds but now also in tanks and tubes exposed to light, algae has also benefitted economically by improved efficiencies through commercial production and LED lighting.
“The price of fish oil is going up,” said John Doherty, chief innovation and scientific officer at Youtheory “The price of algae is coming down. We feel we’re right on the verge of a turning point.”
The Youtheory brand contains an impressive 500 mg DHA and 200 mg EPA concentrates per serving. This is fairly aligned with the best fish-sourced omega-3 concentrates.
Even the container itself is a sustainable success story by using not plastic—not even 100 percent post-consumer plastic, which is starting to be used by brands like Rainbow Light and NOW. The Youtheory Ocean Friendly Omega uses aluminum—an infinitely recyclable material.
“What a great story for this product,” said Doherty. “We’re not taking any fish out of the ocean, and no plastic for the container. Everybody’s happy.”