Euphausia superba, the Antarctic krill species whose fishery hit its catch trigger and closed in 2026
Dr. Wayne Trivelpiece, NOAA Photo Library
The actual species this story is about, not a photograph of a krill oil capsule or any specific supplement brand named here.
Krill Oil Vanished From Two Thirds of Australia's Supermarkets the Same Year Its Fishery Hit a Wall
Coles and Woolworths, together about 67 percent of Australian grocery sales across roughly 2,200 stores, no longer stock krill oil supplements. Environmental campaigners are calling it a win. The brands say the products simply were not selling and were pulled years ago. Both of those things can be true at once. The harder, more interesting fact sits underneath the argument: the Antarctic krill fishery just crossed a catch limit it has never crossed before, and closed for the first time in its history.
- Coles and Woolworths, about 67 percent of Australian grocery sales, no longer stock krill oil supplements. Campaigners call it a win, the brands call it a sales decision made years ago, and neither retailer has explained itself.
- Underneath the argument, the Antarctic krill fishery caught 624,918 tonnes in 2025, crossed its 620,000 tonne trigger, and closed on August 1, 2026, the first closure in its history.
- That closure is a precautionary limit working as designed, not evidence of a stock collapse, and it should not be written as one.
- Krill oil has not disappeared from Australia. It remains available online and through pharmacy chains under brands including Swisse, Blackmores, and Bioceuticals.
Two stories, and neither side is neutral
The Bob Brown Foundation's early September media releases frame the delisting as the result of a long running campaign by environmental groups to end the sale of a product it says is sourced unsustainably from Antarctica, and the group has since called on Chemist Warehouse to follow. Holland and Barrett in the UK stopped selling krill products by the end of April 2026 on explicitly environmental grounds, and helped create an Antarctic Krill Protection Pledge that 15 retailers had signed as of September 22. On the other side, Swisse says its own krill oil product has not been stocked in Coles and Woolworths since 2024 and that it simply was not meeting sales expectations in the supermarket channel. Aker BioMarine, the industry's largest krill oil supplier, is blunter still, arguing that any retailer delisting krill oil is doing it for performance reasons and using the campaign as convenient cover. Coles confirmed it no longer sells krill oil but gave no reason. Woolworths did not respond at all. Krill oil has not disappeared from Australia. As of this story it remains available online through Chemist Warehouse, Blooms The Chemist, Priceline, and Terry White Chemmart, carrying brands including Swisse, Blackmores, Bioglan, Bioceuticals, Biosource, and Quality Health.
The number underneath both arguments
CCAMLR, the body that manages Antarctic fisheries, caps the krill catch at 1 percent of the measured biomass. In 2025 the catch in the main fishing zone reached 624,918 tonnes, crossing the 620,000 tonne trigger level, and the fishery closed on August 1, 2026, the first closure in its history. Aker BioMarine points to its own eco harvesting system, a slow trawl speed and an exclusion device meant to keep whales and seals out of the net, and reports bycatch of about 0.2 percent, alongside its Marine Stewardship Council certification. None of that changes what the trigger closure actually is: a precautionary limit working exactly as it was designed to, not evidence of a stock collapse. Writing it as the latter would overstate what happened just as much as either side's press release does.
Honest caveat
This is a commercial and environmental story, not a health finding, and it should never be read as one. Nothing here changes what krill oil does or does not do in the body. Both causal claims about why the product left supermarket shelves come from parties with a direct interest: the Foundation wants the campaign credited, the supplier wants it discredited, and neither Coles nor Woolworths has actually explained itself, so the real reason for the delisting is genuinely unresolved. Swisse's claim that its product was not stocked since 2024 is also unverified, and if accurate would mean this story is substantially older than it appears.
What this means for you
If you buy krill oil for its omega 3 content, this story does not change the nutritional case for or against it. What it does give you is a real, concrete sustainability variable to weigh against fish oil and algal oil, something most omega 3 content answers with vibes rather than numbers. The fishery closing for the first time ever is a genuine data point. Whether a specific brand pulling off a specific shelf is about that closure or about sales figures is a separate question this story cannot answer for you.
Primary sources
- Krill oil removed from Aussie supermarkets: a matter of environmental concern or something more? NutraIngredients, September 22, 2026.
- CCAMLR fishery report, Area 48 krill, Euphausia superba, 2025.
- Woolworths and Coles end sales of krill oil. Bob Brown Foundation, September 2026.
- Krill fishery activity concentrated in Area 48 since the 1990s. Frontiers in Marine Science, 2025.
Common questions
Why did krill oil disappear from Coles and Woolworths?
It depends who you ask. Environmental campaigners credit a long running pressure campaign. The supplier Swisse says its own product was pulled years earlier for underperforming sales, and Aker BioMarine argues any retailer citing sustainability is really making a commercial decision. Coles confirmed the delisting but gave no reason, and Woolworths did not respond, so the actual cause is unresolved.
Did the Antarctic krill fishery actually run out of krill?
No. The fishery hit a precautionary catch trigger, 620,000 tonnes, that regulators set specifically so it would stop the fishery before any real depletion occurs. Catching 624,918 tonnes in 2025 triggered the closure exactly as the rule was designed to. It is evidence the safeguard worked, not evidence of a stock collapse.
Is krill oil still available to buy?
Yes. It is no longer on Coles or Woolworths supermarket shelves in Australia, but it remains available online and through pharmacy chains including Chemist Warehouse, Blooms The Chemist, Priceline, and Terry White Chemmart, under brands such as Swisse, Blackmores, and Bioceuticals.
Stay Curious.
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