Nationally, almost 20 percent of the fish in Norwegian cages never reaches a plate on the kitchen table. The fish die instead of diseases linked to stress, overcrowding and salmon lice treatment. There is a new report from the Veterinary Institute. – The main reason is very intensive production, concludes the Veterinary Institute. The mortality rate in Norwegian cages was 16.1 per cent for salmon and 17.1 per cent for rainbow trout last year. Both an increase compared to 2020 and 2021. This meant that a record number of farmed salmon were lost in the sea phase last year. Loss figures in land-based hatchery production are also high. A total of 92.3 million salmon and 5.6 million rainbow trout died last year. Worst in the west There are still large geographical differences in mortality in the sea phase. Of the thirteen production areas, it is the area from Karmøy to Sotra that comes out worst with 23.7 per cent. The area from Kvaløya to Loppa comes out best with 9.1 per cent. In the densely farmed area from Bergen via Hardanger to Haugesund, almost every fourth fish thus died before being slaughtered. – Not mature enough Managing Director Torill Moseng of the Veterinary Institute has clear demands on the industry and the governing authorities. She had that last year too, when the previous fish health report showed that a record number of farmed fish died in Norwegian facilities. Department director Edgar Brun at the Veterinary Institute reinforces the criticism. – They must handle the situation better. The industry is not mature enough compared to other livestock farming, according to Brun. – Do you think that the industry is not mature and responsible enough? – Yes, actually. Young people do a lot of strange things. But the industry is starting to mature and then we must expect greater responsibility for the fish’s health and welfare. Department director Edgar Brun for fish health and welfare at the Veterinary Institute believes that the farming industry is not sustainable. Photo: Leif Rune Løland / news Diseases cost more than feed costs He points out that the farming industry now spends more money on overcoming and treating disease than on buying feed. A study from Norce from 2022 shows that farming diseases exceeded feed expenditure already in 2020. – This is a clear indication that the health situation is bad. Health expenditure has doubled in the last ten years. The industry cannot live with the health situation taking the lion’s share of the costs. Brun thinks the growth target is problematic. – Mortality and welfare are a losing party in that growth. Health and welfare must and must be a prerequisite for production growth. We must get a better realpolitik follow-up of the political good words, thinks Brun. – Must consider several measures Fisheries and Oceans Minister Bjørnar Skjæran (Ap) received the report today. He believes that it shows that fish health is not going in the right direction. – There is too much illness and increasing mortality, he says. – What about the government’s goal of increasing aquaculture production? – If the development does not turn around, we will have to consider several measures, but we have strict regulations. And we still want sustainable growth. This is climate-friendly and healthy food. It creates thousands of jobs and large incomes for the community. According to the minister, the industry is viable, but the animal health challenges are too great. Fisheries and Oceans Minister Bjørnar Skjæran (Ap) believes that the report shows that fish health is not going in the right direction. Photo: Torbjørn Brovold / news “All time high” for mortality in farming Karoline Skaar Amthor Head of Environment and Health in Seafood Norway believes it is difficult to reverse the increasing death toll. – Expecting an immediate improvement from one year to the next is terribly ambitious and almost unrealistic. She notes that salmon lice treatment and intensive operations are important causes of increasing mortality. – It is an “all time high” for mortality in farming. It is clear that I must take it very seriously. We have to look at why it is like this in the worst localities. How should we uncover unacceptable activities, and are we good enough to learn from our mistakes? Amthor asks himself. – But they have had several decades to figure this out? – Yes, but it is a long canvas to bleach, and quite complex, compound issues that lie at the bottom, she says. Head of department Karoline Skaar Amthor in Seafood Norway believes that immediate improvement is unrealistic. Photo: Leif Rune Løland / news Fish health report 2022 The Veterinary Institute’s annual fish health report for 2022 was presented on 8 March 2023. Three challenges stand out Based on data from the survey of fish health personnel, figures from the diagnostic laboratory and incidents reported to the Norwegian Food Safety Authority, there are three in particular health challenges that stand out in 2022 for farmed salmon: Damage from de-lice operations Complex gill disease Winter sore. The number of detections of serious viral diseases has stabilized in the past year, while the increase in bacterial diseases continues. In particular, the extent of winter sores is problematic in terms of animal welfare, but also as a reason for the downgrading of fish for slaughter in 2022. There have never been as many locations recorded with winter sores as in 2022. Virus diseases Infectious salmon anemia (ILA) was confirmed in 2022 at 15 locations, something that is a decrease from the two previous years. At the end of the year, there were also five unconfirmed suspicions of ILA based on the detection of virulent ILA virus, and three were at broodstock locations. Suspicion or detection of ILA on broodstock has created challenges for deliveries of roe in Norway in 2022. In 2022, 98 new PD cases were registered, and the number is thus almost identical to the previous year, with 100 cases. The last two years both represent a large reduction from 2020, when there were 158 cases. There were no suspicions or detections of PD virus north of Trøndelag, with the border of the PD-free surveillance zone to the north. Bacterial diseases In the last two to three years, the Fish Health Report has reported an increase in certain bacterial diseases, and this development is expected to continue in 2022. Different types of winter years together represent perhaps the biggest health and welfare challenge linked to bacterial disease in the Norwegian aquaculture industry, and the diagnosis was made at a total of 433 locations in 2022.
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Almost every fourth fish dies in the merdane – news Vestland
