German consumer group calls for ban on Norwegian salmon

In an extraordinary attack, Foodwatch Germany is urging consumers and the country’s supermarkets to avoid Norwegian salmon.

It is claiming that up to one in six larger salmon from Norwegian farms die before they reach slaughter age.

According to the report from Foodwatch Germany, 100 million salmon died in Norway last year - the highest number ever. The main reason for the high mortality rate is infectious diseases, which also pose a threat to the wild salmon population.

The organisation’s website paints a bleak picture of the salmon aquaculture industry. And it also points the finger at the Scottish and Icelandic sectors.

It says: “Eaten alive by parasites and weakened by infections: this is the fate of millions of salmon in Norwegian aquaculture.

“Nevertheless, they are sold – even in our supermarkets. Because every second salmon there comes from Norway.

“The entire salmon production in Norway - and unfortunately also other large producers such as Scotland and Iceland - has significant problems with animal health.”

Foodwatch is slightly easier on organic salmon, saying there are stricter requirements regarding the number of fish per cage.

But it adds: “However, this is no guarantee of healthy fish, even if the extremely high density of animals per cage is one of the main reasons for the rapid and uncontrolled spread of diseases and parasites.”

It also maintains that the proportion of organic salmon in Norway is extremely low: at just 25,546 tons in 2020, only about 1.74% of the total 1,467,655 tons of salmon were farmed in this way. This shows that organic salmon hardly plays a role in overall Norwegian production.

The Norwegian salmon industry has so far ignored the Foodwatch report.