On-farm mortality in salmon aquaculture remains substantially higher than in terrestrial livestock, with individual fish dying from disease, handling stress, and environmental challenges before reaching slaughter - representing both a welfare and an efficiency concern.
High mortality rates in salmon aquaculture represent a significant welfare failure - fish dying from disease experience the full progression of illness symptoms. Sea lice cause irritation, fin damage, and secondary infections before death. Cardiac and skeletal muscle diseases cause distress that fish cannot communicate to caretakers. Rapid detection and removal of dead fish reduces disease transmission but does not address the underlying welfare causes of mortality. Reducing mortality through improved health management, better genetics, and reduced handling stress is both a welfare and a commercial priority - a rare alignment that has driven genuine industry investment in health management.