Studies from NOFIMA Food Research Institute have shown that by focusing on measures to improve fish welfare, the salmon are more robust, grow better and achieve better quality.
High survival rates is correlated with good fish welfare. The goal for Lerøy Salmon™ is a yearly survival rate higher than 94%. To achieve this, we have more than 25% Omega-3 in the feed ingredients compared to standard commercial feed to ensure that the fish are more robust, achieve a higher survival rate and better welfare.
Lerøy Seafood Group has an extensive vaccination program to ensure high survival rates, good fish welfare and reduction in the use of medical treatments.
Surveillance and emergency plans have been implemented to monitor fish welfare. This will reduce our response time in case of fish mortality. Employees are extensively trained to ensure the fastest possible response time in all situations.
On every new site location, Lerøy Seafood Group performs an extensive analysis of the land and sea bed to ensure optimal conditions. All locations utilised by Lerøy are approved for fish farming by Norwegian authorities, and usage approval is required from a number of official bodies. Other conditions of approval include compliance with numerous analyses of local environmental conditions. The most important of these is the MOM-B evaluation.
A MOM-B evaluation is carried out by an independent third party and involves extraction of samples from the seabed under and around the cages in a facility.
A fauna investigation is a detailed assessment involving sensory and chemistry evaluations of the seabed. On the MOM scale of 1-4, with 1 being the best possible score. For locations that produce Lerøy Salmon™, the average environmental status for MOM-B shall be max 1.5.
Lerøy Seafood Group shall not use any kind of antibiotics unless deemed necessary to improve fish welfare.
We guarantee that zero antibiotics are used in any farming operations for Lerøy Salmon™
Chitin synthesis inhibitors (diflubenzuron and teflubenzuron) are substances in fish feed used in treatment against salmon lice. Lerøy does not use chitin inhibitors for medical treatments. Due to concerns about the negative effects these have on the health of wild crustaceans, we have chosen not to use chitin inhibitors.
We guarantee that zero chitin inhibitors are used in any farming operations for Lerøy Salmon™
Due to the concerns regarding the negative effects of canthaxanthin as a pigment source on human health, we only use astaxanthin in Lerøy Salmon™.
The maximum carbon footprint for Lerøy Salmon™ does not exceed 0.2 tonnes CO2 equivalent per tonne gross weight product.
Preventing escapes of fish is a high-priority area for Lerøy. Escaped farmed salmon can breed with the wild salmon and affect the diversity of the wild salmon genetics.
We guarantee that Lerøy Salmon™ are harvested from farm cages with 0 escapes for each generation
The Group invests a considerable amount of work in optimising equipment and routines specifically to avoid escapes of fish. All incidents of escapes, and all events that may lead to escapes, are reported to the fisheries authorities.
