Friday 22 November 2013

'Cleaner fish' eat salmon parasites

Fish farmers have a new approach to tackling a parasite. Sea lice affect farmed and wild salmon. So can "cleaner fish" be used to guard the salmon? 50,000 have been reared to do just that.

The growth of salmon farming on Scotland's west coast has been as dramatic and fast as the fish itself.

The rich flesh of salmon - "the king of fish" - used to be enjoyed by only a select few. But that has changed.

In just 45 years, the amount of farmed salmon reared in Scottish waters alone has risen from zero to around 150,000 tonnes.

Scotland is now a world-leader in the industry. The total value of Scottish farmed salmon is now around £500m, annually. And with demand growing in emerging markets such as China, the future of fish-farming looks bright.

But this extraordinary growth has given rise to environmental challenges around the Scottish coast, and in the waters off Chile, Ireland and Norway.

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