The litigious nature of the salmon farming industry
These examples show how the salmon farming industry deals with attempts at regulation
Norway
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“The legal crusade against the salmon tax comes despite Mowi's continuing astonishing financial success.”
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“The fish farming industry is very strong financially and can run law suits against us endlessly,” says Bjørnar Werner Jakobsen from the Norwegian Food Safety Authority.
"They can afford to take these fights, and they do," Jakobsen says of the major salmon producers. He reveals that the Norwegian Food Safety Authority spends valuable time dealing with expensive salmon lawyers, time that could otherwise be spent on audits.
"First, they complain. If they do not succeed, they will take the case to the courts. They can go on indefinitely.”
It can lead to the Norwegian Food Safety Authority having to pay high legal fees to the salmon industry giants.
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“Three companies have begun court proceedings against the Norwegian government over its refusal to allow fish farming near an important coral reef.”
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“Now the 25-strong salmon farming group have said they will appeal their case to Norway’s Supreme Court.”
“The Oslo government’s case was that the scheme is part of a wider strategy to reduce salmon lice and protect wild fish stocks.”
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“Salmon giant Mowi has been fined NOK 16.3 million (€1.5 million/$1.6 million) by the Norwegian Water Resources and Energy Directorate (NVE-RME) for illegal water extraction at its hatcheries in Orkland municipality and Kinn municipality in Western and Central Norway, respectively.”
"There is no doubt that the rules have been broken. This is well documented. The company should focus on ensuring that similar things will not happen again," Truls Gulowsen, manager for the Norwegian Society for Nature Conservation, told IntraFish.”
“Mowi said it is appealing the decision.”
British Columbia, Canada
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“Canada's Minister of Fisheries refuses to renew salmon farming licenses for three Norwegian fish farming groups operating in the province of British Columbia. Both Mowi and Cermaq are considering legal countermeasures.”
“… seafood giants Cermaq, Grieg Seafood and MOWI Canada West have filed an application for a judicial review to the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) decision to close 15 fish farms in the Discovery Islands in February.”
“Canada’s Federal Court of Appeal has rejected an appeal by Mowi Canada West, confirming the federal government’s decision not to issue new aquaculture licences for open-net salmon farms in British Columbia’s Discovery Islands.”
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“The companies argue they suffered significant financial harm as a result of the 2023 decision by then-fisheries minister Joyce Murray not to renew licences for 15 salmon farms in the region. That decision followed a 2020 mandate from Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to transition away from open-net pen aquaculture in British Columbia by 2025.”
Washington State, USA
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Washington Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz said in a press release. “This effort began by terminating finfish net-pen operations due to lease violations. Despite years of litigation – and a company that has fought us every step of the way – we are now able to deny lease renewals for the remaining net-pen sites. Today, we are returning our waters to wild fish and natural habitat. Today, we are freeing Puget Sound of enclosed cages. This is a critical step to support our waters, fishermen, tribes, and the native salmon that we are so ferociously fighting to save.”
Tasmania, Australia
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“The company [Huon Aquaculture] sued the government in February, claiming it had failed in its environmental protection obligations over Macquarie Harbour by allowing salmon to be farmed in its waters in greater amounts that it could handle”
Scotland
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“The [Scottish salmon] industry has demanded compensation from the government for not being allowed to kill seals. It says it lost £13 million from seal attacks in 2020.” “The [salmon] companies […] stress that they have a duty to protect their fish from harm. More than half a million caged salmon were killed by seals in 2020, they say.” “The Scottish Government ceased granting licences to shoot seals to protect farmed salmon on 1 February 2021.”
Chile
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“In August 2020, Chile’s Superintendency of the Environment (SMA) levied a CLP 5.3 billion (USD 6.7 million, EUR 5.7 million) fine against Mowi for an incident involving a large-scale escape of over 690,000 fish from its Punta Redonda faming center on Guar Island in the south of the country in July 2018.”
“In December of the same year, Chile’s Council for the Defence of the State (CDE) followed that up with a lawsuit filed with the third environmental court against Mowi Chile, seeking action by the salmon farmer to rectify the large-scale escape. At the time, CDE said that the event had caused “irreparable environmental damage,” as the farmer had failed to maintain “the appropriate security conditions and cultivation elements of optimal quality and resistance.”“
“Maintaining that the incident had caused no environmental damage, Mowi Chile appealed the fine to the TC in March 2021”
“‘The recent resolution of the TC [Chile’s Constitutional Court] confirms the position held by Mowi Chile since the beginning of the sanctioning procedure carried out by the SMA, in the sense that environmental damage must be proven and not presumed, also safeguarding the principles of equality before the law and due process,’ the company said.”
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“Cooke Aquaculture claims that it would have losses close to US$8 million, after the stoppage of production at its Huillines 3 cultivation center, which was demanded by the SMA.”
“In October, the Superintendency of the Environment (SMA) ordered, with prior authorization from the Third Environmental Court, the partial halt of activities related to the production process at Cooke Aquaculture Chile's Huillines 3 center, located in the Estero Cupquelán, within the Laguna National Park. San Rafael, due to the imminent danger to the environment due to the future stocking of 170,000 salmon, since the farming site has not been environmentally evaluated according to the Authority.”
“SMA [Chile’s Superintendency of the Environment] is seeking sanctions against Cooke Chile for alleged overproduction at some of its salmon farms located in a national park.”
In response: “Cooke may pursue international arbitration in salmon-farming dispute with Chilean government.”
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Mowi is to appeal to Chile’s Supreme Court after its bid to have an enormous fine quashed was rejected by the Environmental Court of Valdivia.