Omega One flakes?

[Roman K]

So what seems to be the consensus on Omega One flakes? Do you use it? Does it really cause bloating? I read the article posted here about 6 month ago with the manufacturer saying he's using waste to produce it. At the same time I hear people saying good things about it. What do you think?

[Jarrod]

Roman...I use the Omega One flakes everyday...and I have had NO Problems with them or from them whatsoever...my fish eat them with absolutely no hesitation at all..I've checked the contents of them and several other flake foods and truthfully I would say most are pretty much equal in contents...I can't remember all of them obviously...but the content list on them are all listed in a order like human foods unless I'm mistaken...the first ingredient listed is what it contains most of and so on down the list..as for the bloat issue I haven't run into it at all...I'm sure more will come in and help with their experiences and outlooks on it...hth
Jarrod

[chago09]

i also use it everyday and works great for me. Yes sometimes my fish get a little bloated but nothing serious, it's just because i feed these juvies like crazy. Great food and the only flake my fish will eat.

[Roman K]

Thanks for your responses, guys

[sleonard]

From Rocky Mountain Discus:

No other dry discus fish food even comes close to Omega One Flake Food and we have tried them all. You will see improved health color growth and vigor when feeding Omega One Flake Food. Omega One Flake Food is made from whole fish - no fish meal (processed scraps) - no fillers. Omega One Flake Food produces small compact feces. Less food is needed than other brands - does not cause bloat.

[lkleung007]

HI,

Been using Omega One flakes for almost 5 years now...never a case of bloat. I feed first thing each morning and the Discus love them...domestics and wilds. I also use three different varieties from Omega One and rotate them each day.

Lester

[raglanroad]

The information from Rocky Mountain is in error .

It was not some 2nd hand info suggesting that Omega was a bio-waste recyclng project, that info came directly from Omega in an application asking for state funding on the recycling project, turning scraps from waste bins into pet food.
These scraps are heads, bones, and skins - high in protein, but not quality protein. some are indigestible proteins.

A misleading labelling procedure allows the listing of multiple fish types as main ingredient, so it looks like 5 kinds of fish, followed by the fillers, but all the types of fish together make the first ingredient, and so by giving a long list, it appears that more of fish is used, less filler.

Omega also pushes against "meal" by giving the appearance the fish are somehow magically transformed into fish food, while in fact their bio-waste fish parts also must go through exactly the same process.

The owner acts like he will supply any info you desire, but he does not.

[Roman K]

Yep, contradicting info, that's why I'm confused

I kinda suspect that all dry fish food manufacturers use fish industry scraps... Can't see them using hi-quality fillets that are perfectly good for human consumption and thus able to fetch more money. It would mean that Omega Sea is lying when it claims on its website to be using "whole fish". But I guess so are the rest of the manufacturers...

I will try to find some data on digestibility of different sorts of proteins in fish fillets vs. bones, skins and heads. I will also send Omega Sea an email asking how do they reconcile the information they provided on state-funds application and the information they provide at their website. I just want to see what (if anything) will be their response

Anyway, thanks for taking time to respond

[nightowl1250]

Not a lie...they use the "whole" fish bones etc as well. No company will be 100% honest about what is in their products. There are some that are better than others I'm sure, but whne you open some fish foods you can smell the "fish" in them. All my fish seem to go for foods that list krill etc in the ingredients, and they do have a strong fish smell.

[Roman K]

Here is the text of an email I sent to omegasea@ptialaska.net:

Hello guys at OmegaSea, I have a question regarding ingredients that go into your line of products.

At your web-site you state that "A large amount of the marine proteins used by Omega One in their flake foods come in the form of whole beautiful Salmon" and
"The salmon, herring, shrimp, and other seafood ingredients we use are food grade".

At the same time this document http://www.dced.state.ak.us/astf/adm...annual2000.pdf from Alaska Science and Technology Foundation states that:

"Crews supplies the processors with totes so they can dispose of the fish heads and carcasses as they clean and gut the fish. The processors, Crews said, are more than happy to get rid of the byproduct because it saves them the time and cost of grinding and dumping the waste. Once back in his plant, Crews grinds the remains of salmon, cod and other species into a slurry with vitamins and other ingredients to produce one of the fastest selling flake fish food on the market today"

Could you please explain exactly what constitutes the bulk of your seafood ingredients, whole fish and shrimp or heads and carcasses and other byproducts of fish and shrimp?

If they answer I'll post it here.

[Roman K]

The reply:

Hello,

Exact compositions of products and ratio's are condidential information as it pertains to proprietary amounts of fats, amino acids, and Omega 3&6 fatty acid profiles.

However, we use all of the items you mentiond. The halibut and cod frames that come from the processors are extremely rich in fresh fats. We take the same care of these items that the processors due for halibut and salmon fillets destined for the finest restaurants.

In terms of people food most of the sandwich meat you eat as well as probably all of the hot dog and sausage in the supermarkets use chicken and turkey heads and frames and other meat scraps as the main ingredients.

The one item ingredient you did not mention was fresh whole kelp. We harvest this ourselves and are only one of two companies in the State of Alaska to have this ability.


I hope this answers your questions


Thanks
Denny

[etr63]

Hi Roman
I have never used the Omega One flakes. This is what I have been useing http://www.aquadine.com. my fish like it alot. I just got in some new juvies and they took to it in 2 days. Here is a thread that i started that list the ingredients of the two flakes you mix together for discus. http://forum.simplydiscus.com//showthread.php?t=46280
Just one more option to consider.
Earl

[raglanroad]

This has all been done before, actually, when this year a couple of forums took the manufacturers to task to prove their claims and disprove claims against them.
the only companies that came out to give any explanation were New Life and HBH . Hikari gave a small bit of information.
HBH proposed a mass trial with free food, but the amateur "scientists" on the forums immediately threw that scheme into confusion because it wasn't a "scientific" test.
What you are left with in the case of Omega is Omega saying they put "lots" of whole fish in there.
Seeing there appears a discrepancy between the Omega information on the application for state funds, and the ads Omega puts out, it comes down to reading between the lines of all the fish food labels, knowing how they give false impressions, etc.
there are a number of "tricks" that can be used to mislead.
As to whole fish, once you are getting good fish meal from a small fish, they are whole.As to if Omega is using lots of whole salmon of the kind we eat...I'd say not likely.

[raglanroad]

If the amount of bio-waste used is not a major factor; rather whole fish is the deal at Omega, then why is the company characterized as a biowaste recycling project?

[chago09]

k seriously you guys are really naeve if you honestly believe whole fish is used in a fish food. Costs would be enormous to buy nice fillets and grind them up and sell them for $7 in a can. Or they can sell them for way more to humans for their consumption. If any of them do use whole fish they are ones that have been sitting too long and have began to rot. They know people won't buy it so they grind her up and put it in a can for your fish. People have been using this stuff for years and the fish people keep have been fine. So if it's been working for years.. then I'll keep using it myself. Fish food is all bones, skin, organs and eyeballs. Maybe if your lucky they throw in some expired whole fish. If you still don't belive me, then maybe you should consider some human food. If they grind up garbage in some foods for us, what makes you think they won't do it for fish food. Have any of you heard of hot dogs????? or how about chicken nuggets???? I worked at a chicken processing plant and I know exactly what goes in all of those foods. I could even tell you the actual measurements considering thats what my position was... when I was 17 I worked there for a summer as a machine operator. Once again believe me your fish is not eating whole(fresh) fish and your cats and dogs are not eating fillet mignon either.