Increasing resistance to chemical sea lice treatments is a growing crisis in salmon farming. Managing resistance requires integrated strategies combining treatment rotation, biological control, and selective breeding.
Chemical treatment resistance means salmon increasingly suffer from sea lice infestations that cannot be controlled effectively. This welfare crisis compounds as resistance spreads. Integrated management approaches that slow resistance development while reducing lice burdens are both a welfare and sustainability imperative. Research into resistant salmon genetics and effective biological controls offers the most promising long-term solutions.