Use of fish by-product waste in dehydration as an alternative to obtain essential fatty acids.

In 2022, according to data from the Colombian fisheries statistical system, fishing and aquaculture reached a production of 300,163 tons; on the other hand, in 2022 Bogotá marketed 3,171 tons of fish (Rangel et al., 2022). Therefore, the fishing industry represents large amounts of waste annually, which results in economic losses and negative impacts on the environment.

Studies carried out by students from the Agri-Food research hotbed SIA of the UNAD, determined that in a hotel service between 43 and 53% can be wasted in varieties of fish such as corvina, grouper variety grouper and Berrugate, national Pacific bass, variety catfish Cajaro considering head, fin, backbone, skin, and tail. Other studies have shown that such waste can be used efficiently for multiple purposes: improving the functional properties of foods, providing essential nutrients, obtaining gelatin, cosmetic use and in the jewelry industry, allowing the comprehensive processing of this product. The SIA research characterized these wastes, subjected them to a dehydration treatment under controlled process conditions and through physicochemical analysis including gas chromatography of waste and dehydration, determining that these wastes have nutritional characteristics even better than the fillet we consume with the presence of essential fatty acids and their eicosanoids, resulting in an alternative that reduces food waste and provides essential nutrients that can only be synthesized through food. Essential fatty acids and their eicosanoids are related to neurological and anti-inflammatory functions, as well as the prevention of multiple diseases.