Norwegian seafood company, Marine Harvest, has sold its 31.3% stake in the country''s salmon breeding company, Aqua Gen, for NOK173m (GB£19.1m).

Marine Harvest has carried out breeding of Atlantic salmon based on Mowi strain for more than 40 years

Marine Harvest has carried out breeding of Atlantic salmon based on Mowi strain for more than 40 years

Marine Harvest sold its stake to Aqua Gen’s majority owner, Germany’s EW Group GmbH.

The company, which is one of the largest producers of farmed salmon, says it has sold its Aqua Gen shares to concentrate on its breeding activities around the Norwegian Mowi strain. The Mowi strain breeding methods, which have shown good survival and low feed conversion ratio, have led to a higher resistance to a number of salmon diseases.

Marine Harvest has carried out breeding of Atlantic salmon based on Mowi strain for more than 40 years and has significantly increased its efforts in this area during the last few years. Going forward, the company expects applied science to lead to improvements in breeding methods.

Following the sale, the comapny's strategy is to continue with its 89 ongoing research projects and become a leader in sustainable salmon farming.

The sale of Marine Harvest’s shares will not affect its future cooperation with Aqua Gen.