Aquaculture

Farmed Salmon Lice Treatment Welfare 2026: Industry Standards

Industry lice treatment welfare standards in 2026 reflect significant improvement from baseline but continued gaps requiring attention.

Key Facts

Norway's Salmon Industry Treatment Guidance now includes welfare parameters for mechanical treatments
Treatment mortality reporting has improved but remains voluntary in most producing nations
Cleaner fish welfare standards are incorporated into ASC and RSPCA Assured certification
Lice resistance monitoring is becoming standard practice in leading companies

Welfare Considerations

Lice treatment welfare has improved from an afterthought to an increasingly measured component of salmon welfare management. Mandatory reporting of treatment mortality, cleaner fish welfare requirements, and resistance monitoring represent genuine progress. Extending best practice to all producing nations remains the key challenge.

What You Can Do

Support international standards development for salmon lice treatment welfare
Choose salmon from certified producers with published treatment welfare performance data
Advocate for mandatory lice treatment mortality reporting in national aquaculture regulation