Advanced examination of Atlantic cod aquaculture development, the welfare standards emerging in Norwegian production, and what responsible cod farming could look like at scale.
Norwegian cod aquaculture represents the most developed welfare standards in global cod production, providing a model for what responsible farming could look like while the sector expands. The emerging regulatory framework addresses stocking density, handling procedures, and slaughter methods in ways that most competing aquaculture industries do not yet approach. The welfare challenges that remain — cannibalism management, disease, and the fundamental question of whether farmed conditions meet the behavioral needs of a wide-ranging predatory fish — cannot be fully resolved through management alone. Responsible cod aquaculture development requires ongoing investment in welfare science, transparent reporting of welfare outcomes, and genuine regulatory enforcement rather than voluntary compliance.