Report from Valencia: Aquaculture for all?

€100bn price tag for new Norwegian lice regulations

Meeting controversial new Norwegian government sea lice levels could cost the salmon sector NOK 100bn (£7.48bn) over the next ten years. That’s the warning from Ragnar Tveterås, Professor and Vice-Dean of Research at the University of Stavanger.

 

The new regulations, contained in a White Paper published in April, would replace the controversial “traffic light system”, which attempts to regulate lice-induced mortality on wild salmon smolts based on modelling and improve the welfare of farmed salmon.

 

Lice quotas under the new regulations would require an average 36-42% reduction in sea lice, which equates to just 2-6 lice per 100 salmon, which is a challenging target.

 

Based on modelling, any farm with higher than 10% “lice-induced mortality” would be deemed to be in breach.

 

The Norwegian salmon farming sector was strongly opposed to the proposals and the Norwegian government has postponed implementation while further consultation takes place.

 

But this delay coincides with the Norwegian Food Safety Authority, Mattilsynet, warning of above-average sea lice levels as a result of elevated seawater temperatures.

 

Essential oils from everyday household ingredients could hold key to sea lice reduction

 

Incentivising offshore salmon farming is one way of keeping sea lice levels low. But herbs and spices found in kitchen cupboards could be another solution, according to a Scottish pilot.

 

Essential oils derived from oregano, thyme and citrus fruits have shown promising results in reducing sea lice attachment to Atlantic salmon, with up to 70% reduction in test conditions.

 

Speaking at a session on functional feeds, DSM-Firmenich’s Global Innovation Lead Ester Santigosa highlighted the promising results of the functional feed Digestarom, which was trialled on live fish populations at a seawater research facility operated by Stirling University’s Institute of Aquaculture on the west coast of Scotland.

 

DSM-Firmenich now plans to share its product with salmon farmers across northern Europe as part of a wider trial process.

Spain and salmon bucking the trend of declining seafood consumption

Salmon is the only fish bucking the trend of declining European seafood consumption and is only set to grow as Europe gets older, according to a leading expert in consumer behaviour.

 

And Spain is the only European country that hasn’t seen a decline in seafood consumption in recent years.

 

Today, only 29% of people consume fishery or aquaculture products at least once a week at home, with convenience, price and availability playing a huge part in shifting consumer choices.

 

Amidst an 11% decline in overall fish demand in Europe since 2019, salmon is the only species that has seen an increase in consumer demand.

 

Speaking in the third plenary session, Worldpanel by Numerator’s Joan Riera said Spanish consumers are paying 30% more for fish than a few years ago, as price inflation eats into monthly household budgets across Europe.

 

Consumers are increasingly looking to discounters and visiting more retailers in search of cheaper prices and promotions. Sales of supermarkets’ own label brands are increasingly favoured, with purchases up from 43% to 45.9% in the past two years alone.

 

As well as a shift to cheaper protein like chicken, consumers are also shifting to cheaper species within the seafood category.

 

“Convenience” is the biggest driver of food purchasing behaviour. For time-poor millennials with young families to care for, seafood is viewed as a less convenient option than meat or vegetables, which have seen a rise in purchases over the same period.

 

Seen as healthy, convenient and tasty, salmon is the only seafood species that has bucked the trend of declining seafood purchases. Demand is up, rising by 4% since 2019 while every other species has seen a fall. Salmon retains its place as the most popular seafood with 78% of households purchasing the nutritious fish at least once a week.

 

And there are good reasons for optimism in the future.

 

First, European supermarkets are changing the way they sell fish, eschewing the traditional staffed fish counter and moving to pre-packed fish which is more in line with UK supermarket offerings.

 

Second, salmon is ideally placed to ride the wave of “protein hype”, with younger, more health (and image) conscious people choosing salmon for its protein-rich and nutritional benefits as part of a healthy and active lifestyle.

 

Last, Europe is getting older. As the age profile of the continent shifts to the right over the next two decades, there will be fewer families and more older and retired people. As they age, these groups will have more time to shop, prepare meals and take healthy eating more seriously.

Seeing is believing

People living near fish farms are more likely to back the industry and its expansion.

60% of people living on Norway’s west coast expressed general acceptance of the industry. However, opinions were split when it came to growth: just over one-third supported further expansion, while a slightly lower proportion opposed it, according to new research by Norwegian food research institute, Nofima.

 

This pattern isn’t unique to Norway. In Connemara, on Ireland’s rugged Atlantic coast, local sentiment echoed similar levels of cautious acceptance – only 11% of people living locally see aquaculture as a “threat”, compared to 40% nationally.

 

With 95% acceptance, aquaculture has more support in Ireland than marine renewables (92%) according to Máire Ní Éinniú, Head of Nua Mara – Ireland’s marine innovation centre.

Irish aquaculture in numbers

 

The inaugural Seafood Sustainability Progress Report: Aquaculture 2025, presented by Ronan Cooney of Bord Iascaigh Mhara (BIM), paints a largely positive picture of the country’s farmed seafood industry, as assessed for its environmental impact, economic value, social contributions and innovation.

 

Farmed salmon is Ireland’s most productive aquatic food system, yielding an impressive 13 tonnes per hectare – enough to provide over 86 million meals annually. In terms of labour productivity, salmon farming leads the pack: each of the 423 employees in the sector produces nearly 50% more edible protein per person than those in mussel farming.

 

The salmon sector also creates significant ripple effects across the economy. With a multiplier effect of 3.3, each direct job supports an additional 2.3 roles, bringing the total number of people economically dependent on salmon farming to over 800, with a combined wage bill of €22m, far higher than oyster and mussel farming. However, the report also raised the issue of an aging workforce especially in mussel farming, where nearly 70% of workers are over 45. While the salmon sector skews younger, gender diversity remains a challenge across the board — just 4% of salmon farmers are women, compared to 9% in shellfish farming.