A fault with a salmon sorting machine led to large quantities of salmon being mistakenly labeled superior. That is the explanation Salmar gives for why salmon of poor quality ended up in Israel. Only first-class salmon is allowed to be classified as superior. Salmon with wounds must be classified as production fish, and must not be sent out of the country. Salmon’s categories Superior fish of the best quality without flaws and blemishes, it is preferred in the export market. Ordinary Fish with limited external and internal defects. Production fish Cannot be exported until error correction. These are fish that have been dying or sick during slaughter, or have deformities or gross processing errors. It can be used for human food, e.g. processed products. If the salmon has died of its own accord in the cage, it must not be used for human consumption. In principle, raw salmon should not be used for human consumption either, but there are exceptions. At the end of May, Israeli food authorities notified that salmon with large wounds had been exported from Salmar. A third of the salmon had visible wounds. This led to the Norwegian Food Safety Authority carrying out a digital inspection of the salmon giant’s slaughterhouse on Frøya. Because in the message from Israel, errors and wounds appeared on salmon that had been slaughtered by Salmar. It concerned salmon slaughtered on three different dates: in December 2022, as well as in January and May 2023. ILLUSTRATION ATYPICAL WINTER SORES: Salmon with so-called atypical winter sores. Photo: Are Nylund / UiB Exporting such salmon is not in line with the regulations. Both the slaughterhouse and the farm the salmon came from belong to Salmar. It is a company controlled by the Witzøe family, the country’s richest family. The family has ownership control in what is the world’s second largest salmon group. They also own a number of companies within the entire marine industry. NORWAY’S RICHEST: Salmar is controlled by the Witzøe family. On this year’s tax lists, Gustav Witzøe was the country’s richest. Photo: Aleksander Jakobsen / Magent photographers 30 percent sore fish Israel had received a batch of fresh salmon from Salmar where more than 30 percent of the salmon had open wounds, both classic and atypical winter wounds. In addition, a batch of frozen salmon had been sent where approximately 30 per cent of the salmon had open wounds. Also from Salmar. Wound development is not compatible with good fish welfare. This is stated by the Veterinary Institute. – The degree of severity can vary from superficial wounds to deeper ones. More serious wounds can eventually perforate the salmon’s abdominal cavity. This is stated by Ingunn Sommerset, section leader at the Veterinary Institute. ABOUT VINTERSÅR: – It is not compatible with good fish welfare, says Ingunn Sommerset. Photo: Ida Yasin Andersen / news On 13 June, the Norwegian Food Safety Authority carried out the inspection at Salmar’s slaughterhouse. – It may seem that the company has not had control over the sorting, wrote the Norwegian Food Safety Authority after an inspection of the slaughterhouse belonging to Salmar on the island of Frøya. Was automatically graded superior During the inspection, Salmar explained that there had been problems with the sorting machines. The error led to a large number of salmon being automatically graded as superior, regardless of quality. This is how the company explains the slip that occurred. The machine error is said to have led to up to 16,000 fish per day being missorted. PHOTO SALMAR AUKRA: From a Salmar sorting facility, Photo: Gorm Kallestad / NTB Only days before the Norwegian Food Safety Authority was contacted by the Israelis, the error should have been discovered and corrected. It is stated in the inspection report. The authority writes: “According to the Norwegian Food Safety Authority’s assumptions, the scope must have been far greater than the consignment to Israel. The salmon with winter sores that ended up in Israel were picked up at three different times in a period of almost six months.” news has asked Salmar how long they missorted salmon due to the technical error. – We see no reason to speculate on how long or why this was not discovered earlier. But there is no indication that this has extended over a long period of time. Nor have we received feedback from customers that indicates this. This is what Simon Søbstad, sales director at Salmar, writes to news. The regulations state that all fish with wounds and deformities must be corrected domestically before it is converted into human food. Salmon with winter sores must also be slaughtered continuously for reasons of fish welfare. Both this year and last year, Israel has returned several batches of salmon from various producers. The reason was so-called quality defects and skin wounds. A total of 440,000 kg of fish were returned from Israel this year and last year, according to figures obtained by news. In addition, some salmon have been destroyed in Israel. news has previously reported that Israel sent smelly, bad salmon back to Norway in 2022. It did not come from Salmar, but from another exporter. A load of frozen fish from 2022 was of such poor quality that it was not approved as mink feed. After the containers were returned to Norway, the salmon was tested and then downgraded to fuel. It was labeled useless as food for both animals and humans. Received guidance and promised recovery In the first months of 2022, Salmar had problems with winter sores in several locations. At the Hjortøya location, it ended with a record-breaking fee, because the company had failed to slaughter the sick fish. – The salmon from Hjortøya did not end up in Israel, writes Rune Sivertsen, strategy director at Salmar to news. Salmar does not say where the salmon ended up. The inspectorate determined that the regulation on the quality of fish and fish products had been breached. A fee of NOK 1.675 million was given. For several months in a row, the locality struggled with winter sores in cage 4. The report from the inspection states: “At an inspection on 20 April 2023, we were informed that it was planned to destroy cage 4, but that this was stopped by the company’s management. We have not been informed when it was planned to be destroyed, nor why this was stopped” Strengthened staffing – Our aim is that everything we do today should be done better than yesterday, writes sales director Søbstad. – Has Salmar improved staffing and tightened finished goods control at the butchery? – In line with our feedback to the Norwegian Food Safety Authority, the lines were immediately staffed. In parallel, mechanical equipment was straightened out. Furthermore, it can be confirmed that staffing at the plant has been strengthened in general, Søbstad replies, – Does Salmar think that the rules for exporting production fish are too strict? – We do not believe that the rules for exporting production fish are too strict, writes sales director Søbstad to news. Still a lot of winter sores There have been major problems with winter sores on salmon for several years. The problems occur when the water is cold and often after lice treatment. But if the salmon has to be slaughtered before it is an adult, it represents enormous values. A cage can contain 200,000 salmon. And a facility can have 10 cages. If the salmon has to be slaughtered when it is 2 kg instead of 6.5 kg, it amounts to a loss in export revenue of tens of millions of kroner. Per cage. The industry admits that wound injuries are a significant challenge. – The scope is higher for 2023 than previous years. It also means that you have more fish than before that are “downgraded”. Fish welfare is certainly challenged when it gets winter sores. Often it can mean that the fish is suffering. That’s what Øyvind Andre Haram, director of communications at Sjømat Norge, writes to news. In recent years, Sjømat Norge and the industry have initiated major work to control winter sores. So far they have not succeeded. Fish health expert, professor Are Nylund at UiB, says winter sores are a serious welfare problem for salmon. Such wounds also open the way for the salmon to be infected by several types of diseases. THE SALMON EXPERT: One of Norway’s foremost experts on fish health, Professor Are Nylund at UiB. Photo: Oskar Rennedal / Oskar Rennedal – Wounds reduce the quality of the fillet, but this will to some extent be camouflaged after smoking, says Nylund. Salmar is not aware that ulcers affect salmon quality. – We are not aware of winter sores affecting food quality, says strategy director Sivertsen. Lack of overview The skin on salmon is supposed to protect the fish against infectious diseases and is necessary for the fish to be able to maintain its fluid balance. – It cannot therefore be ruled out that the fish feel a persistent pain in connection with skin wounds, says Nylund. Although winter years are an increasing problem, the disease is not reportable. There is therefore a lack of a full overview of the scope. – Good fish welfare is the basis for Salmar’s business. It is also consideration for the health and welfare of the fish that governs Salmar’s management of winter sores, writes Salmar’s strategy director Sivertsen.
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This is how wounded Salmar salmon were missorted and sent to Israel – news Norway – Overview of news from different parts of the country
