Cermaq has confirmed the presence of the ISA virus in fish in two pens at their site Langøyhovden in Nordland, Norway.
The virus was detected by Real Time PCR screening, as a result of the company\'s routine testing program, part of its preventive fish health strategy. The mortality at the site is low and there are no clinical signs of outbreak.
Cermaq Norway is considering culling the fish in the two affected pens to prevent spread of infection to the remaining fish at the site.
Cermaq said that following ISA outbreaks at other farming operators’ sites in the region it has monitored its operations with regular testing.
The Langøyfjord site contains approximately 660,000 fish of an average live weight of 2.6 kg. Out of these 173,000 fish (average weight 2 kg) will be culled. The culling of 173,000 fish at the Langøyhovden site is expected to have only limited financial impact.
The control of the fish at the site will continue; harvesting will be done in agreement with the Food Authority.