ISA news takes shine off SalMar harvest numbers

SalMar has today reported a bumper 24,000 tonne-plus increase in its 2023 third quarter harvest. But the company has also reported the discovery of infectious salmon anaemia (ISA) at one of its sites.

The harvest figure should be treated with some caution because the Q3 2022 harvest did not include salmon from the NTS group which it acquired last year.

This year’s total is 78,100 tonnes against 53,600 tonnes this time last year. The breakdown is as follows (last year’s totals in brackets):

• Farming Central Norway 48,400 tonnes (36,000 tonnes;
• Farming Northern Norway 25,700 tonnes (13,800 tonnes); and
• Icelandic Salmon 4,000 tonnes (3,800 tonnes).

The output from Scottish Sea Farms, which SalMar owns jointly with the Lerøy Seafood Group, is not included and should become known when the full Q3 report is published on 9 November.

Any celebrations at the big harvest increase, however have been tempered  by the news that ISA has been found at a SalMar farm in Flatanger municipality in central Norway.

The company farms there in conjunction with the Veterinary Medical Mission Centre.

Suspicions were aroused at the end of last month and these have now been confirmed by the Norwegian Food Safety Authority.

The usual restrictions have been put in place in order to limit the spread of infection.

These include a ban on the movement of fish in the locality without special permission. People visiting the area are also subject to restrictions on movement.

Norwegian salmon farms have been subject to a sharp increase in ISA cases this year, particularly along the central coastal area.