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Email the author (Login required) Recent growth trends and challenges in the Norwegian aquaculture industry
DOI: https://doi.org/10.3856/vol40-issue3-fulltext-26
Abstract
Over the last 20 years, the Norwegian production of salmon and rainbow trout has increased by about 10% per year and will exceed 1 million MT in 2010. All on-growing after stocking in sea takes place in open cages in the fjords and along the coast, and the average cage volume has increased by about 300 times since the 1980’s. Out of a total number of 4,000 cages more than 1,200 cages hold 20,000-60,000 m3. In 2005, the term ‘maximum allowable biomass (MAB)’ was introduced and limits the highest annual production to 65 tons per 1,000 m3 licensed volume. Generally, the increasing volume and deeper cages have made the control of the fish stock more challenging. Sea lice attacks, especially in South Norway, have represented a major problem over the last three years. Reduced growth, increased mortality and lice treatment leads to significant losses and extra costs for the industry. Some recent reports indicate that increased use of wrasses in the cages improved the situation in the summer 2010 compared to the previous year. Extensive vaccinating and strict regulations regarding handling, etc. usually result in effective protection against diseases, but still there may occur regional outbreaks of serious diseases, such as pancreas disease (PD) and infectious salmon anaemia (ISA). Attacks of sea lice and escape of salmon and trout from fish farms are considered to be among the main reasons for the strongly reduced wild stocks of sea trout and a reduced return of salmon spawners in the fjords and along the coast of southwest Norway.
