Mowi's feed mills at Valsneset, in Norway.
Photo: Mowi.
"We are delighted that Mowi Feed has received ASC certification for both feed plants in Valsneset, Norway and Kyleakin, Scotland." So reported Mowi this week about the achievement for its two feed mills in December 2024. Achieving Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC) certification, the company said, is just the first step in a future in which further development, improvement, and simplification will be key focus areas of its business.
"For Mowi, this is an important milestone and in line with our sustainability strategy," said Catarina Martins, Chief Sustainability and Technology Officer. "Mowi's certification strategy is to have 100% of our harvested yearly volumes certified with a GSSI (Global Sustainability Seafood Initiative) recognised standard, either ASC, BAP or Global GAP."
"Achieving the ASC certification at our Feed plants is important to maintain the ASC certification at our European farming sites," she concluded.
As mentioned above, the operations of the Mowi Group's feed manufacturing division are centered around its state-of-the-art feed mills at Valsneset in Norway, which opened in 2014, and Kyleakin in Scotland, which opened in 2019.
According to the company, these are purpose-built factories specifically designed to produce high- nutrient-density feed for farmed fish including salmon and trout, and are equipped with all the facilities that drive efficiency and cost-effectiveness in an environmentally conscious manner.
Mowi Feed is solely responsible for the entire feed development, manufacturing and sales process, from identifying nutrient requirements to raw material optimization, and does so through ingredient procurement, manufacturing and logistics; finance; and completing the process with customer support and gathering market intelligence.
In a LinkedIn statement, Mowi said the certification was achieved through comprehensive teamwork and working systemically for the last two years. "In this process, we have developed an even stronger Feed organisation and seen the advantages of working as 'OneFeed', sharing experiences and best practices," the company wrote.
"Both ASC feed certifications for Mowi Feed reflect further progress for responsible salmon farming in the UK and Norway," the Aquaculture Stewardship Council said for its part in the statement reporting Mowi Feed mills' achievements.
Mowi Feed's mill jetty at Kyleakin in Scotland.
The ASC Feed Standard sets rigorous requirements for aquafeed production, covering areas such as social and labor rights, health and safety, environmental stewardship, and responsible sourcing of raw materials. Launched in 2023, by 2025 the switch to ASC-compliant feed will be necessary for producers to continue meeting the ASC Farm Standards and maintain their certification.
Specifically, ASC-certified farms have until October 31, 2025, to ensure that their feed supply also meets ASC requirements. Therefore, like Mowi, several of the main aquafeed producers have already obtained such certification by the end of 2024.
Cargill (EWOS) Canada, for example, became the first Canadian feed company to obtain ASC certification at its Surrey, British Columbia feed mill, and before that Mexico's Vimifos and Skretting Chile, the first feed mills to obtain ASC certification in February 2024, and also BioMar.
The Danish aquafeed producer was the first to obtain ASC Feed Certification in the UK, through its Grangemouth plant in Scotland, dedicated to the production of feed for salmon and trout. The UK's was the second in a series of certifications achieved by BioMar between October and November 2024.
A few days earlier, the company's plant in Ecuador, dedicated to producing high-quality shrimp feed, had achieved it, and shortly after BioMar Chile obtained ASC Feed certification for its three production plants dedicated to producing aquafeed for Atlantic salmon, coho salmon and trout.
Currently, there are 16 certification units within the ASC feed program - comprising 22 certified feed mills - in several countries, including Canada, Chile, Ecuador, Honduras, Mexico, Norway, Thailand, Vietnam, and the United Kingdom.
With numerous further feed companies in the initial audit phase, the Aquaculture Stewardship Council said 2025 is already shaping up to be another strong year of ASC Feed Certification uptake.