Big reward offered to catch 27,000 salmon that escaped from cages

A Norwegian seafood company is appealing to the public to catch 27,000 escaped farmed salmon, offering a reward of $45 for each fish caught.

Mowi, the world's largest supplier of farmed salmon, announced on February 11 that approximately 27,000 of its salmon escaped from cages in Troms County on the evening of February 9 and swam into waters in northwestern Norway, according to The Guardian .

Approximately 27,000 salmon have escaped from cages in Norway.

The company said the netting separating the cages from the natural water source was damaged by the storm, causing about a quarter of the 105,000 salmon being raised to escape. The average weight of this batch of fish was 5.5 kg.

Mowi is calling on registered professional anglers in Norway to catch and bring fish to a designated collection point, where they will be rewarded $45 USD (approximately 1.1 million VND) for each fish caught.

Vegard Oen Hatten, a spokesperson for the Norwegian Fisheries Agency, said that companies are typically only allowed to recapture escaped fish within a 500-meter radius of the cages. However, authorities inspected Mowi's facility and ordered an expansion of the search area due to the large number of escaped fish.

Experts believe these fish could pose a significant threat to wild salmon as they compete for spawning grounds and may spread disease. Mating between farmed and wild fish could result in offspring with lower survival rates.

Atlantic salmon rest in a lake in the Namsen River tributary in Norway while swimming upstream to spawn.

"The escape of 27,000 farmed salmon is a disaster for wild salmon. Science has proven that crossbreeding between wild and farmed fish results in offspring with low survival rates in the wild in the long term," said Pal Mugaas, spokesperson for the wild salmon conservation organization Norske Lakseelver.

Norway exports approximately 1.2 million tonnes of farmed salmon annually. Last summer, the country's wild salmon population plummeted to historic levels, leading authorities to ban salmon fishing in 33 rivers. This year, the proposed ban is 42 rivers and 3 fjords.

Source: https://thanhnien.vn/treo-thuong-lon-de-bat-27000-con-ca-hoi-xong-khoi-long-nuoi-185250212101942077.htm