New momentum for sustainable smoking of local fish

Onake, the Basque Country Smokehouse in Saint-Jean-de-Luz, has specialized in smoking salmon and trout since 2018. Every year, the company faces production saturation unable to meet the high demand for smoked fish during the holiday season. To address this, Onake decided to invest in equipment that would allow them to process throughout the year local and sustainable species such as trout, tuna and line-caught mackerel, sourced from small local boats. 

Rather than purchasing equipment used only for one month, Onake chose to expand its range and optimize production. Investments were made in the smoking activity, with the purchase of a new smoker and slicer, increasing production capacity by 30%. Onake also recycles its offcuts into canned fish rillettes, as part of a zero-waste approach and boosting the local economy. At the same time, the canning activity has also been modernized, thanks to the purchase of a printer for batch number labelling.