Organic Seafarms' autumn salmon smolt delivery disrupted, new owners scramble to fill the gap

One of Norwegian aquaculture company Organic Seafarms' three farming sites at Gildeskål currently holds around 200,000 salmon. The company had planned to stock another 500,000 salmon smolt this autumn, but the smolt delivery was subsequently interrupted. The site, located about an hour's drive south of Bodø, has been affected by events in Saltenfjorden.

According to an iLaks report on 20 October 2026, a farming company in the Salten area was first detected with infectious salmon anaemia (ILA), after which restrictions were imposed on the smolt supplier over suspected infection, leaving this small farming company without its planned autumn smolt supply.

The three new shareholders of Organic Seafarms — Sjybol, the holding company under Lovundlaks, Selsøyvik Havbruk and Kobbvåglaks — had barely completed the takeover before they had to help resolve the autumn smolt supply problem. Deputy General Manager Bertil Pettersen told iLaks that the company had stocked about 200,000 spring smolt and was originally due to receive the first batch of the 500,000 in August, but this did not happen, and it is now waiting for the new shareholders to deliver the first batch of smolt in the coming days. He said the spring-stocked fish are in good condition.

Pettersen said the fish are feeding well and have reached about 1.3 kg in weight, and look very good. The Norwegian Food Safety Authority (Mattilsynet) monitors all spring-stocked smolt groups, with isolation monitoring lasting about 12 months. He said production has been well maintained and the smolt due to arrive soon are larger in size, so the lost growth can be made up. He said the company is very fortunate to have shareholders willing to step in, as this batch of smolt was originally needed for the shareholders' own production.

Pettersen also said that, as a small independently operated farming company, it would have struggled to come through this situation so smoothly without these shareholders, who arrived at just the right time. He noted there was some tension while waiting for the new shareholders, with larger neighbouring companies continuously expanding, and that a joint takeover by three smaller companies was probably the best outcome. He said the new shareholders acted immediately and solved their problem, which also illustrates the ambition behind the investment.

Production manager Endre Nordgård said that with the new shareholders, the company has gained more resources, including smolt, live-fish transport vessels and slaughter capacity, and more importantly knowledge. He said it is good to have someone to lean on and the company will become stronger. Nordgård himself has industry experience dating back to the founding of Codfarmers in the early 2000s and has been through ups and downs. He said that being a small independent farming company may be quite challenging today, and that with well-resourced shareholders, the path and opportunities ahead are exciting.

According to the production manager, this year's projected slaughter volume of 2,600 tonnes looks achievable. The fish to be slaughtered this year are in Gifas cages further south in the same municipality, while fish in the company's own cages will be slaughtered next year and do not need to be transported long distances to Salten N950 at Sørarnøy.

Endre Nordgård added that local cooperation is important and has been part of the company's strategy since its founding. The company currently has fish at Gifas, and Kvarøy Fiskeoppdrett has also been an important partner in the company's development, having produced two cycles of fish for it.

Bertil Pettersen said you shouldn't put all your eggs in one basket. The company has three own sites in the same farming area, which makes it very vulnerable if something happens, and having friends nearby makes the company more resilient. The company can produce fish for others and also place its own fish with them, which is a good form of cooperation for a small farming company.