Troubled waters in BC fish farms
News about the downturn has also reached Norway, where the main salmon farming companies operating in British Columbia all have their head offices. “Canadian crack for salmon farmers” reads last Saturday’s version of the Finansavisen. The paper states that Norwegian fish farmers are struggling in Canada, with Marine Harvest having lost some NOK 200 million (~€ 27 million) in operating profits over the past year and a half largely due to “poor operations and the kudoa parasite”. A write-down of inventory due to a positive diagnosis of the presence of the IHN virus at one of its farms in the Tofino area on the west coast of Vancouver Island caused a loss for Mainstream Canada of NOK 17.4 million (~€ 2.35 million) so far this year. All this while discussions are being quoted for the compensation by governments to the tunes of tens of millions of dollars to a salmon farming company for the loss in eastern Canada of fish from one farm due to the ISA virus.
Last week saw the situation in B.C. getting worse, with the following news out of the B.C. Salmon Farmers Association in the form of a Public Update regarding “IHN and BC Salmon Farms”;
Two preliminary positive test results for IHN (Infectious Haematopoietic Necrosis) virus have been reported by BC salmon farmers this week. During routine fish health monitoring, Mainstream Canada identified a possible case of IHN at their Millar Point farm north of Tofino on Friday. The finding was immediately reported to the Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) and public notification was made on Monday. Ongoing and regular fish health testing also returned a preliminary positive result on Grieg Seafood’s Culloden Point farm in Jervis Inlet on Wednesday. Once again, all reports were made immediately.
These farm sites are now isolated and both companies are working with the CFIA on confirmatory testing and next steps. The farming community has also come together to enact a pre-developed action plan to manage the situation. “The work our members have put into proactive plans around protecting fish health is really exemplary,” said Mary Ellen Walling, Executive Director. “Everyone is working together to see our response carried out efficiently and effectively.”
IHN is a natural virus of the Pacific Ocean, which can be carried regularly by wild salmon who have a natural resistance to it, studies show. They can carry the virus their whole lives without any negative impacts on their health. The health of Atlantic salmon, however, can be affected by IHN as they have not developed immunity to it. IHN has no effect on human health.
In May this year, a farm in the north Tofino-area was diagnosed with IHN. Those fish were culled and composted and increased monitoring was put in place at other farms across British Columbia. This finding was the first of its kind in British Columbia in nearly 10 years. As a result of reinstated increased biosecurity measures, the BC Salmon Farmers Association’s public farm tours have been postponed. We are also asking for the public’s assistance in respecting isolation measures by not approaching any farm site without first contacting the company directly.
The BCSFA will continue to update the public weekly.
