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The northern Norwegian R&D
company
Lofilab has successfully
produced between 700,000 and 800,000 cod fry. The fry have
already been sold and could represent 3,000 tonnes of farmed
cod ready for the market in three years.
This is the first time that
such large scale production of cod fry has succeeded. "This
is the breakthrough we have waited for and believed in all
these years," Fiskaren quotes Lofilab managing
director Arne Kolbeinshavn as having said. |
Around 3,000 tonnes of farmed
cod could
be ready for the market in three years.
(Photo:R Basili) |
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The fry have been sold and will
end up in cod farms along the Norwegian coast. The price is
NOK 25 per fry, which means that Lofilab will clear NOK 18
to 20 million for their production.
There have been challenges to
overcome for Lofilab. Last year, the company lost half its
cod fry production due to cannibalism. The water became
opaque for a period of time, and when the water cleared up
again, half the fish were gone.
This year, the company dealt
with the cannibalism problem, but another problem surfaced.
Norway had an extremely warm summer, and warm water causes
stress to the fry and increases mortality. Lofilab found its
way out of the problems and out of one million cod larvae
which was set out it seems that 700,000 to 800,000 survived
up to 50 grams fry.
Kolbeinshavn is not quite
ready to celebrate though. The fry still have to be
vaccinated, which could lead to added stress for the fish.
By Odin Hjellestad
FIS Europe
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