A project collaboration between research institutes in Norway, The Netherlands, Denmark and Iceland aims to find out if cod that is ethically farmed leads to better fish quality.
According to Fiskeriforskning, farmed salmon that is stressed before slaughter results in poorer fish meat quality. As cod farming is experiencing strong growth, scientists want to see if the same is true of cod.
In the project, two groups of cod were tested: one that was raised in a high density of fish and poorer water quality; and the second that had the best conditions with good space and optimal water quality.
At killing, a selection from each group was handled in two different ways: it was stressed before killing, or it received gentle and calm treatment.
"One of the purposes of the project is to get answers to whether this type of ethical production, where the cod is killed gently without stress, actually results in better quality", says Senior Scientist Børge Damsgård at Fiskeriforskning.
In the project, the entire production process is documented up until the cod is eaten. The complete results will be available in the spring of 2007. But the conclusions from the phase when the cod were juveniles are ready.
"It is evident that the growth was clearly poorer for the group that was raised intensively. The group that had optimal conditions had 20-30% better growth", says Senior Scientist Hilde Toften.
