This article was featured in Eurofish Magazine 5 2026.
The share of Norwegian farmed salmonids classified as “production fish” fell to 10.6% of harvest volume in the first half of 2026, its lowest first-half level since 2019. This compares with 17.7% in the same period of 2025 and 30% in 2024. At the same time, Norway recorded its highest-ever harvest volume for the first six months of a year. Production fish are salmon, trout, or rainbow trout found at slaughter with wounds, deformities, or other quality defects. Under Norwegian rules, they cannot be marketed for human consumption until these defects have been removed through domestic processing. The proportion discarded entirely remained low and stable.
The Norwegian Food Safety Authority says the lower share may indicate improved fish welfare because several classification criteria relate to injuries and signs of disease, but stresses that the statistics alone cannot establish the cause. The improvement also appears to be relatively widespread geographically. The authority’s public dataset, based on mandatory industry reporting, provides quarterly slaughter volumes and quality classifications dating back to 2018.
