Adding sustainability to salmon farming regulations : a comparative case study of salmon farming regulations and the ASC salmon standard

Abstract: Food scarcity is one of the main challenges related to our planet’s growing population and changing environment. Furthermore, our current food production is aggravating and accelerating climate change, as almost 24% of global greenhouse gases derive from agriculture (Troell, Jonell, & Henriksson, 2017). Seafood is likely to become an even more important resource for animal protein than it already is, as the population grows, and the environment becomes less predictable which potentially could result in depleted yields. Aquaculture volumes have increased substantially during the last three decades, with increased production numbers from five million tons in 1980 to more than 106 million tons in 2017 (FishStat, 2013; Zhou, 2017). One species that have seen a rapid growth in production numbers is Atlantic salmon. The increased production in aquaculture has resulted in an increased environmental concern about the consequences of intensive farming. Consequentially, this has resulted in an influx of eco-certification schemes. One of which is the Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC). This study has compared the national/provincial legislation on aquaculture in the four biggest salmon producing regions; Norway, Chile, Scotland (UK), British Columbia (Canada) and the ASC’s standard, to compare how different the legislations are from the guidelines set up by this eco-certification scheme. The study found that the ASC standard has stricter standards than the aforementioned regions. Furthermore, this study has compared the potential sustainability effects of using national standards versus international standards for salmon farming and found that international standards have an important role to play as they have the potential to make everyone abide by the same minimum requirement. However, in order for them to have a real effect they need to be legally binding and not just be voluntary guidelines.