Does the use of salmon frames as bait for lobster/crab creel fishing significantly increase the risk of disease in farmed salmon in Scotland?

Abstract

Salmon farming is an important economic activity, and employer, particularly for remoter areas of Scotland; crustacean fisheries are also significant small businesses in these areas. Salmon frames (the head and spine that remain after evisceration and filleting) are sometimes used to bait the creel pots used to catch lobsters and crabs. These frames may contain pathogens that could potentially be spread to salmon farms in the vicinity of creel fisheries. Therefore, an analysis has been carried out for key pathogens of farmed salmon to assess the risks associated with this process. Infection of farms via creel bait requires that: (1) pathogens are present in salmon at harvest; (2) they are not removed from the salmon that used for bait during processing; (3) they transmit from creel pot baits to salmon farms. This last step is critical and leads to most of the uncertainty in results. Risk were assessed for 7 viruses, 3 bacteria, and 3 eukaryotic parasites of importance to salmon farming. A potentially significant risk was identified in association with disease control programmes if fish were filleted at a secondary processor; such a situation should arise only rarely. A very low risk, per event, was identified from imports, however, because of large numbers of Norwegian imports processed in the UK this risk is always present. Risks were at worst of low (disease control) or very low (imports) probability and are significant only because of the magnitude of consequences.