Norwegian Minister of Fisheries and Ocean, Cecilie Myrseth, said the aquaculture industry is important for Norway but environmental considerations must come first.
Ministry of Fisheries and Oceans of Norway.
Following the consultation period after the submission of the new color-coding in the traffic light system for aquaculture, the Norwegian Ministry of Fisheries and Oceans has established final regulations on the adjustment of salmon farming permits for 2024. Although some minor changes have been made to the wording of certain provisions after the consultations, the content has not changed.
In addition to ruling growth and reduction, the regulation continues to prioritize environmental issues and maintains the Government's decision on the coloration of production areas, a decision that, as reported by WeAreAquaculture, disappointed the Norwegian seafood industry.
"The aquaculture industry is important for Norway, and there is broad political consensus that we must have sustainable aquaculture management. I understand that it is challenging for farmers on the West Coast who have to reduce their production, but I believe that environmental considerations are so important that they must come first," said now Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Cecilie Myrseth.
Farmers in red areas may also be exempted from capacity reduction
As we learned when the Norwegian Government released the 2024 color-coding in the traffic light system, among the thirteen salmon, trout, and rainbow trout production zones along the Norwegian coast, six received a green light, five a yellow light, and two a red light. This coloring implies that there are growth opportunities in six areas, production should be frozen in five areas, and capacity reduction orders should be issued in two.
As stated then and now confirmed, the Government is allowing the aquaculture industry to increase salmon production capacity by a total of 21,000 tons in green areas, while farmers in red areas must decrease capacity by up to 11,400 tons. According to the Ministry of Fisheries and Oceans, the reduction is because the combined impact of salmon sea lice on the industry over the last two-year period is considered unacceptable.
Nevertheless, as announced earlier this month, that decrease could be smaller, depending on how much production capacity is exempt from reduction under the exemption rules. It will be up to the Norwegian Food Safety Authority to decide on the exemptions, but all farmers with particularly low emissions of salmon lice will be able to apply for growth based on exceptions at a fixed price in all production areas.
This can be applied even in red areas, as Minister Myrseth has now emphasized. "Aquaculture companies in red areas may be exempt from reducing their capacity if they can demonstrate sufficiently low lice numbers. They can apply for exemptions, and some actors on the West Coast have received them before," she said.
Changes in deadlines related to exemptions
As announced when unveiling the new color-coding for 2024, the offered increase in production capacity in green production areas will be 6%. Of this, 1% is initially offered at a fixed price. This is a growth offer on permits that farmers already have, and the price per ton is NOK 170,000 (EUR 14,631 - USD 15,841).
Regarding red areas, as mentioned before, the reduction is estimated at approximately 11,400 tons of production capacity, although the actual reduction could be less, depending on how much production capacity is exempted from the reduction under the exception rules.
In either case, fixed-price growth or exception-based growth, the deadline for farmers to apply is April 17. The remaining production capacity, including that which is not sold at a fixed price in green areas, will be allocated through an auction of new permits.
Finally, the Norwegian Ministry of Fisheries and Oceans reported that two changes have been made to the deadlines. Both the deadline for correcting errors in the exemption application and the deadline for accepting growth offers based on exceptions have been set at one week.