Land-based salmon farmer downgrades 190 tonnes of fish because of off-flavour

China land-based salmon farmer Nordic Aqua Partners (NOAP) has decided it won’t sell 190 tonnes of harvest-ready fish for human consumption after detecting high concentrations of the off-flavour compound geosmin.

NOAP said the problem was caused by overloading of the purging unit at its recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) facility in Ningbo.

The fish farmer said geosmin is a naturally occurring compound known to be absorbed by fish in all RAS. Although it is harmless to both fish and humans, it can, in elevated concentration, negatively affect the taste of the fish.

NOAP added that its team has identified the root causes and is implementing both immediate and long-term solutions to prevent future occurrences, including enhancing its water filtration and management processes.

No compromise on quality

“Our Atlantic salmon has since its launch in April received very good feedback in the market. However, following recent quality checks, elevated levels of geosmin were identified in specific production sections. As a result, the affected salmon, 190 tonnes (head on gutted), will not be sold for human consumption but thus at a substantially lower price,” said Andreas Thorud, managing director of Nordic Aqua (Ningbo) Co., Ltd.

“Nordic Aqua does not compromise on quality and we relentlessly seek premium products at our facility. Hence, the decision to harvest is in line with our commitment to maintain the highest standards of quality and safety for our consumers while ensuring that the affected product is utilised responsibly.”

After harvesting the affected fish, the purging department (8 tanks) will be emptied, disinfected and refilled with pure, cleaned water, and new salmon will eventually be moved to purging, said NOAP.

Controlled restart

It added that as one element of the incident was overstretching the purging capacity due to excellent fish growth, the purging department will be restarted in a controlled manner. This will thus further impact the harvest volume for the whole second half of 2024.

The alternative use of the 190 tonnes HOG and reduced harvest will negatively impact revenue in the third quarter and the slower than planned harvest will possibly also influence Q4. NOAP will give an updated volume guidance for 2024 as a part of the Q2 presentation on Thursday, August 22.

NOAP chief executive Ragnar Joensen said: “Nordic Aqua is in the forefront of the development of land-based salmon farming, and learning and minor surprises is a part of such development. Nordic Aqua has given focus on recruiting the best of competence and experience and have chosen to go for the highest quality partnership suppliers, such as (technology supplier) AKVA Group and (feed supplier) Skretting. This has again proven to be a critical part of our strategies, as issues like this are dealt with in an efficient manner, based on deep and broad insight.”