HLM -Chapter 1346 Precious Oil

Wild Arctic shrimp, also known as cold-water shrimp or northern sweet shrimp, are mainly found in the Arctic Ocean and the North Atlantic. They are all wild-caught, with the main harvesting countries being Canada, Greenland, Denmark, Iceland, and Norway.

These shrimp grow in cold waters about 150 meters deep. They grow slowly, taking 3 to 4 years to reach the size required for commercial use, which gives their meat a firm texture.

Arctic shrimp sit at the very bottom of the marine food chain and serve as a primary food source for the vast marine life of the North Atlantic. Even massive creatures like whales rely on Arctic shrimp as a staple in their diet.

Because they are extremely rich in amino acids essential for the human body and vitamin A, some production lines process Arctic shrimp to extract shrimp oil.

Arctic shrimp oil has numerous health benefits, including protecting cardiovascular health, reducing harmful fat accumulation in the blood, supporting the nervous system, repairing bones and joints, and protecting vision and skin. For these reasons, it is very expensive.

However, Arctic shrimp themselves also contain up to 50% protein. Using them to produce shrimp oil wastes this protein. To maximize profit, producers typically do not extract oil from them.

The most commonly available shrimp oil on the market today is krill oil. Krill are small and have little direct culinary value, but Antarctic reserves are large. Arctic shrimp oil, on the other hand, is very rare.

After hearing the explanation, Wang Bo was intrigued and quickly signaled the captain to see if a deal could be made.

The captain laughed, “My good friend Wang, look at the spray when this ship moves. If we get too close, the outcome will be just like your bird. Let’s go ahead and wait for it at the dock.”

They sailed ahead of the Atlantic Red Shrimp vessel. The captain used the radio to contact the fishing boat, then came out and said, “All set. I arranged it for you. They can give you up to fifteen bottles of shrimp oil, each bottle costing twenty thousand, is that okay?”

Wang Bo did a quick conversion. Twenty thousand per bottle is about two hundred New Zealand dollars. He asked, “How much oil is in each bottle?”

The captain laughed, “Not measured by volume, but by capsules. The oil is processed into capsule form on the boat, around a hundred capsules per bottle.”

Wang Bo thought for a moment—this wouldn’t be enough.

Arctic shrimp oil is highly effective. Its ability to reduce high blood fat and support joint health far exceeds that of ordinary fish oil supplements.

He had just checked online via the ship’s network. Generally, one Arctic shrimp oil capsule provides the health benefits of ten ordinary fish oil capsules, particularly for those with high cholesterol or high blood fat.

Moreover, due to the structural differences between shrimp oil and fish oil, human absorption varies. Ten fish oil capsules cannot be fully absorbed, whereas one Arctic shrimp oil capsule can be fully absorbed.

From this perspective, the rarity and value of Arctic shrimp oil become even more apparent.

He thought for a moment and said, “I need more. I’m willing to pay a higher price. Ask the crew. If they are willing to sell, what’s the highest price and the maximum number of bottles they can offer?”

The captain said, “I don’t doubt your financial capacity, Wang, but customs limits the quantity of shrimp oil. Doing this might be considered commercial use.”

Wang Bo smiled, “I have strong connections. Ask without worry.”

The captain nodded, made another call, and came out saying, “The crew reserved some for themselves. They initially planned to gift it to friends. If you pay a high price—say, double—they can sell it to you.”

“How many bottles?”

“About fifty in total.”

Wang Bo casually said, “Alright. Tell them I’ll take all of it, forty thousand per bottle, right?”

“Right.”

They went ahead to the port, then to the deep-water pier where the massive cargo ships were docked, waiting for the Atlantic Red Shrimp vessel.

The seaside was full of seabirds. White seagulls flew freely in the air, occasionally skimming the water’s surface, snatching a small fish or shrimp before flying off again.

Little Meng was restless again.

Old Wang didn’t hesitate to give it a firm scolding to keep it calm—this little troublemaker was definitely a handful.

Tourists and locals strolling by enjoyed the still-bright evening. The sea breeze was strong but no one minded. People took photos and had meals as usual.

In the seaside square, someone was sketching. Upon seeing Wang Bo, the artist waved, “Sir, would you like a family portrait?”

Wang Bo replied, “Sorry, I don’t have that much time.”

The artist smiled, “No need to wait here. Just let me take a photo, and I’ll draw from it. Come back in an hour to pick it up.”

Wang Bo didn’t refuse—he agreed to have it drawn.

A sketch cost sixteen hundred krona. After taking a photo, Wang Bo paid, and the artist started working seriously.

At this moment, the Atlantic Red Shrimp vessel slowly entered the port.

As the massive ship docked, many people gathered around, some women with children—clearly the sailors’ families.

Others carried boxes. The yacht captain explained to Wang Bo that these people were also there to buy Arctic shrimp oil.

According to international protection agreements, the annual Arctic shrimp catch in the Atlantic is around 100,000 tons, with a slight increase in recent years. The main fishing nations are Norway, Finland, Iceland, the United States, and Canada.

Thus, genuine shrimp oil is only produced in these countries.

However, many shops sell Arctic shrimp oil on the market. Most are fake—some made from other shrimp species, others from fish oil, relabeled and sold fraudulently.

Whether in Iceland or the U.S., fake vendors abound. Globally, counterfeit products still find a solid market.

Onboard, sailors were responsible for distributing the Arctic shrimp oil. Wang Bo then realized that before the ship set out, most of the oil had already been reserved.

When the ship went out to sea, each person received a ticket corresponding to their estimated quota. They then exchanged tickets and money for shrimp oil in an orderly fashion.

The fact that the yacht captain had managed to secure fifteen bottles for him was already impressive.

Money, however, opens all doors.

Through the captain, Wang Bo handed cash to a sailor, who placed a bunch of shrimp oil bottles in a plastic bag and said, “Good luck.”

Seeing him take so many bottles, many people were unhappy and shouted:

“Jackson, what’s going on? Why does this foreigner have so much shrimp oil?”

“For God’s sake, I’m your fellow countryman here!”

“Sh*t, I only got five bottles, that guy must have fifty! How infuriating.”

The sailor lazily said, “Forty thousand per bottle. That’s the price he paid.”

The crowd quieted down, though a few muttered, “These foreigners are really rich.”

Father Bo laughed, seeing this scene, and said, “It’s just like back when we used meat vouchers and money to buy meat. So even in Iceland, people buy shrimp oil with ‘oil tickets’?”