United Kingdom: The increased demand for cleaner fish have resulted in a large increase in lumpfish production

Can cleaner fish become dinner? Would you like lumpfish for dinner? Nofima is trying to reveal how millions of cleaner fish used in the Norwegian salmon farming industry can be used for human consumption. Cleaner fish, such as lumpfish, ballan wrasse and other species of wrasse, are currently being used by fish farms because they eat salmon lice. Millions of cleaner fish are put into salmon sea cages and do an important job for the health of the farmed salmon. The increased demand for cleaner fish have resulted in a large increase in lumpfish production, which now have become the third largest farmed species in Norway in terms of value. “Sweets for the children” “Lumpfish are put into the salmon cages when they weigh around 25 grams. Salmon lice are rather like “snacks” for lumpfish. The lumpfish are given their own food while they are in the salmon cages, but in addition they like to snack on salmon lice while they are small,” says Gøril Voldnes. She is a researcher at Nofima ...