Europe’s First Salmon Farms Earn BAP Certification

February, 2014

Fjardalax ehf’s salmon farm sites in Iceland are Europe’s first salmon farms to attain Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) certification, the Global Aquaculture Alliance announced in late February.

The two farms, Patreksfjörðu and Tálknafjörður, are situated in the West Fjords of Iceland, in three adjacent fjords, Tálknafjörður, Patreksfjörður and Arnarfjörður.

The farms have been in operation since 2010, and the fish are processed at the company’s plant in Patreksfjörður.

Fjardalax is expected to produce approximately 4,000 metric tons of Atlantic salmon this year. The majority of its salmon is exported as H&G fish to buyers in Europe, the United States and Japan. The company’s products are marketed under the Arctic Salmon brand.

“We at Arctic Salmon are extremely proud to have attained BAP certification, Europe’s first salmon farms to do so,” said Höskuldur Steinarsson, the company’s general manager. “As a fairly young company, operating in the harsh conditions of the North Atlantic, we feel that this is a great marketing opportunity for us. The remoteness of our locations and the sheer distance from market makes it a pure necessity for us to produce salmon that stands out. Our ambition has therefore always been to focus on markets that respect our product as unique.”

Added Steinarsson: “BAP certification is something we have been working hard to get for some time. The requirements are demanding, so we are very happy to finally be there and are looking forward to see how the market will react to this. It is our true belief that the future of aquaculture lies in products that through certification are proven not to burden nature but rather are eco-sustainable. Attaining BAP certification is a very important milestone along that path for Arctic Salmon.”

“The certification of Icelandic salmon farms is a key milestone for the BAP program within Europe,” said Peter Redmond, BAP’s VP of business development. “We welcome Arctic Salmon as the first of many farms in Europe to be certified to the GAA’s Best Aquaculture Practices certification standards, and commend the leadership role that the company has assumed within the industry. We are very proud of this new association.”

About BAP
A division of the Global Aquaculture Alliance, Best Aquaculture Practices is an international certification program based on achievable, science-based and continuously improved performance standards for the entire aquaculture supply chain — farms, hatcheries, processing plants and feed mills — that assure healthful foods produced through environmentally and socially responsible means. BAP certification is based on independent audits that evaluate compliance with the BAP standards developed by the Global Aquaculture Alliance. For more information on BAP, visit http://bap.gaalliance.org.