What is our approach to fish health and welfare?

Caring for our fish lies at the heart of what we do, and our primary goal at Mowi is to raise healthy fish and protect their welfare at every stage of the farming process.

Our approach to fish health and welfare is second to none. Our highly trained farmers, veterinarians and biologists care for our salmon to industry-leading health and welfare standards. From ensuring vigilance of fish behaviour, responsible medicinal treatment, optimal environmental conditions, and excellent quality feed and feeding practices, our expertise and genuine care ensure Mowi salmon are raised to industry-leading standards.

Vigilance of fish behaviour

We continuously invest in research and development to advance fish health and welfare in our operations. By using innovative technology, our knowledgeable farmers closely monitor the well-being of our salmon underwater, using real-time information on their health and tracking potential welfare issues such as water quality and risk of disease.

Responsible medicinal treatment

Our fish health and welfare management is focused on disease prevention, minimising suffering, and limiting the spread of disease if fish become ill. We will only intervene if a fish is in discomfort or distress, and thanks to improved innovation, we rarely use antibiotics. Still, when we do, they are prescribed and certified by our veterinarians and are regulated by authorities. Fish health treatments can be organic, medicinal or non-medicinal, and freshwater baths are provided when necessary to improve salmon health.

Like other livestock in the UK, we vaccinate our salmon smolts to protect them from bacterial and viral diseases that can develop when exposed to the natural environment. Vaccinating our fish against common diseases allows us to maintain a significantly higher welfare standard by mitigating the impact of infections when they arise.

Optimal environmental conditions

We employ the best in the industry to ensure that the environmental conditions are optimal for the welfare and well-being of our fish.

We use a combination of farming techniques to ensure our salmon have the best start in life. Whether on land or at sea, we raise our salmon using various farming techniques that closely resemble a salmon’s natural life cycle. Like wild salmon, farmed-raised salmon spend the first part of their life growing in freshwater. Our teams closely monitor everything from water quality to temperature and oxygen levels, ensuring the best conditions and health for our salmon to thrive. At Mowi, we extend the freshwater phase in our post-smolt facilities to enhance fish health and welfare by reducing their time in open waters. Only when they are physically ready are our salmon carefully transferred to sea-based sites, where they stay in our net pens for up to two years.

Our salmon are also stocked at densities that safeguard their health and enhance performance, providing ample space to swim and express innate behaviour. Fully stocked, our ocean net pens contain 2.5% fish to 97.5% water, which gives every fish space to swim and school and ensures our salmon are healthy and of high quality.

Quality feed and feeding practices

At Mowi, we produce state-of-the-art feed to ensure the best possible fish health. Our world-leading research and development teams make sure that our fish receive the nutrients they require for optimal welfare. By sourcing high-quality ingredients and functional additives, we can meet our salmon’s nutritional needs throughout their life cycle.

The ongoing implementation of Smart Farming technologies across Mowi feed enables us to deliver feed to our salmon through our innovative feeding systems and monitor feeding behaviour and appetite in real time using our camera-based feeding operations and feeding control centres. This improves fish health and welfare as we can make any necessary adjustments quickly and easily to ensure our fish are happy and healthy.

As leaders of the Blue Revolution, we must maintain the highest standards in fish husbandry and welfare to ensure our salmon are healthy and happy. Our business depends on it so we can raise healthy seafood.