Livestock company Lerøy-Midt received 1.4 million in fines from the Norwegian Food Safety Authority (Mattilsynet – FSA) after 25,000 salmon died at a delousing station for farmed fish last year.
The FSA wrote in its decision, that Lerøy-Midt had not killed the injured salmon, which were in a cage at Hitra, and they earned an estimated six million kroner.
The Livestock Company had been imposed with the maximum fee allowed to the FSA for the offence: 1.4 million, reported Adresseavisen.
‘The company exposed the fish to a treatment that they couldn’t take, and they had not taken the necessary steps later when they saw that the fish hadn’t tolerated the treatment’, said the head of FSA’s department ‘Trondheim and Omegn’, Ivar Eiken to NRK news.
Lerøy had previously been reported for similar mistreatment of fish, but were charged this time.
‘The incident is regrettable and has led to changes in the use of so-called ‘well boats’ for such treatment. [Well boats, or ‘wells’ allow seawater to circulate, so that the fish can be fed live from farming to fish precessing enterprises.]
Lerøy-Midt disagrees with the FSA’s assessments, and its application of the law in this case, and will therefore submit an appeal against the decision’, said executive vice president of aquaculture in Lerøy Seafoods, Stig Nilsen.
Source: NTB scanpix / Norway Today
