Agriculture & fisheries - ScienceNordic

Controversial CRISPR-method used to make farmed salmon sterile

Gene editing using CRISPR is much debated globally but used in several projects in Norway. “This is not a single method”, says researcher Dorothy Dankel, comparing its diversity to surgery.

Kelp products could surround us in the future - but how sustainable will the industry be?

OPINION: A large upscale of the kelp industry is probably around the corner in Norwegian coastal waters. In order to conduct kelp farming in an ecologically and economically sustainable way, it is crucial to understand how the ecosystems work.

Fish is fish - isn’t it?

New test procedures will save dairy cows from Mycoplasma bovis disease

Disease caused by the bacterium Mycoplasma bovis in dairy herds can now be diagnosed more easily and quickly, resulting in better welfare for cows and reducing financial losses for farmers.

An eco-friendly cure for a global fish-killing disease

Scientists have discovered a molecule that can save freshwater fish from a widespread deadly parasite.

Can developing countries leapfrog the West to a new food security reality?

Yes, but it will take a digital revolution.

We have bred "selfish" plants for thousands of years

Plant breeders should cultivate less selfish traits in crops to increase total yields, says scientist.

World food production depends on phosphorus. Are we about to run out?

For the past decade, scientists have warned that phosphorus reserves are running low. Are we heading towards a crisis?

Who cares about pellet saithe?

There’s one thing we can say about men from Northern Norway that are over 60: They sure care about pellet saithe. And not just a little – they care about it in a way that is statistically more significant than everyone else in Norway.

Norway's first onshore sea urchin farm up and running

Sea urchin farming could give Norway a new export commodity for gourmet restaurants in Europe and Asia, and help to save the kelp forests on Norway’s coastal seabed.

Norwegian fish farmers reprimanded for poor treatment of cleaner fish

The aquaculture industry doesn’t do a good enough job supervising the use of cleaner fish, and many die. Unless the industry does a better job documenting the welfare of cleaner fish, it will need to stop using them, the Norwegian Food Safety Authority states in new report.

Matured cheese and ham - yes please, but what about matured clipfish?

A Norwegian google search for "matured food" displays results for balsamic vinegar, cured meat, fermented trout and many types of cheese. Why isn’t clipfish on the list?

Salmon in pain when warm water is used as delousing treatment

Salmon are briefly immersed in warm water so the lice lose their grip. The treatment is the most common non-chemical delousing method used at Norwegian fish farms. But its imminent ban comes as new research reveals the pain and injury to the salmon.

Every year, 50 million cleaner fish die in Norwegian fish farms

“Would we tolerate the same mortality in other animals?” one veterinarian from the Norwegian Food Safety Authority asked at a recent conference on salmon lice.

Norwegian salmon is a huge success story – but could it get even bigger?

The salmon industry creates thousands of jobs along the coast. Its export value is twice that of all other Norwegian fish combined. Could more unique products add even more value?

How to make your own luxury caviar

If you are lucky enough to catch a salmon that is full of roe, you must never throw the roe away!

Snorkeling rivers to count escaped farmed salmon

SHARE YOUR SCIENCE: Mission: Find out how many farmed salmon have escaped into the wild, threatening populations of wild salmon. Scientific method: Snorkeling.

Downturn in crucial North Sea fish species

Herring, sandeels, sprat, and other forage fish are important for the North Sea ecosystem and fisheries. But populations are struggling, shows new study.

Giant skates almost extinct in Scandinavia

A new study shows that skates, sharks, and sturgeon are the most threatened fish in Europe.

She’s given birth to six calves before — but now she finally gets to be a mother

Most dairy cows aren’t allowed to mother their calves. Julie Føske Johnsen from the Norwegian Veterinary Institute is leading a new research project where cows get to visit their calves.

Feeding the future’s farmed salmon

One of the biggest critiques of farmed salmon is that their feed is made from raw materials that could be eaten by humans. Norwegian scientists are working to make fish food from trees and leftovers from the food industry.

'Fish welfare should be a criterion for obtaining new aquaculture concessions'

If fish mortality affects the bottom line, preventing mortality will be given more priority, says fish welfare researcher Tore Kristiansen.

How annoying is it for sheep to wear a bell all summer long?

Do sheep bells qualify as mistreatment of animals?

How scientists discovered salmon that need less food to grow

Norwegian researchers have identified young salmon that can be farmed using less feed than their not-as-efficient brethren.

Does the consumer take food for granted?

In my career as a researcher and head of food research I have been met with quizzical looks many times. Is it possible to research food? Most people see the need to understand more about nutrition and the body’s need for nutrients. But what else could there be to research?

Would you like salt fish or klippfisk for dinner today?

That’s really something you should have thought of yesterday or even the day before.

Tomatoes used to taste bad. Not anymore.

What do tomatoes, coffee, potatoes and beets have in common? An expanding number of varieties.

On the hunt for flying fish

“If you get sick and need to throw up, that’s fine, but if you don’t then that’s fine too,” says the skipper, laughing through his big smile, before setting off on the voyage taking nine excited business professionals and R&D representatives out on his boat towards the open sea. The location is Macau in northern Brazil. The goal: to harvest flying fish roe.

Norwegian farmers keep tabs on cattle with GPS

British and continental beef cattle have not been bred to thrive in Norwegian forests. But they're doing well, according to the researcher who has used GPS to help track their grazing patterns for three summers.

Chickens do best when they can play, climb and bathe

Chickens play more if they grow up in a varied environment with hay bales to peck at, boxes to climb onto and bedding in which to dust bathe. They become more active and build stronger bones, according to a new study.

How healthy is farmed salmon?

Is farmed salmon as healthy to eat as wild salmon? And what about the health of the fish themselves?

Why we should use these bacteria in fertilizers

OPINION: A certain type of bacteria can reduce emissions as well as help food production. Scientist Kedir Woliy Jillo explains how.

Can salmon lice end up on your dinner plate?

Are there any parasites on the fish you buy in the store?

How sustainable is organic food?

Organic food seems like it should be good for the environment. But not all Norwegian researchers agree it is sustainable.

Can't agree on harmfulness of GMO maize

A Norwegian study suggested that GMO maize could potentially be harmful to the environment. But the study was dismissed by the European Food Safety Authority, who claimed the study was flawed.

Making retired hens into more than a refuse problem

In Norway over three million retired laying hens are gassed to death and end up as refuse - anually. A group of Norwegian scientists want to put the hens to better use.

Clearing the name of frozen veggies once and for all

More and more people are trying to eat locally grown foods. But especially in winter, local vegetables are most likely to be found in the supermarket’s freezer section.

Goby behaviour says much about sexual selection

One fish off the coast of central Norway has set a record for the number of female mates it had. And that’s not all.

Here comes the electric fishing boat

The world’s first electrically powered fishing boat will be presented this August in Trondheim, Norway. But more time and development is needed before it can run completely without diesel.

Making good sperm better

Why are boars in Norway more fertile than elsewhere?

An in-trawl camera for fish

A cod swims right past the camera. These images could make it easier to set fishing quotas.

Calves need more motherly care

Calves are usually separated from cows right after birth. A new study indicates that they should get more time with their mothers.

Old DNA reveals Viking impacts on flora and fauna

Vikings’ navigational skills and travels led to more than plundering and cultural exchanges. It also spread Scandinavian plants and animals to places abroad – and likewise brought foreign flora and fauna to the Nordic countries.

Super salmon training starts early

Healthier, stronger, bigger: this is a goal for Norwegian farm-raised salmon—and Harald Takle is their personal trainer.

Rounding up a cattle virus in human noses

Watch where you sneeze! Humans can make cows sick by transmitting a virus from barn to barn – sometimes in their noses.

We carry viruses from barn to barn

Pneumonia is a mounting problem in barns.

Happy farmer, happy cow

To succeed with farm animals, you should enjoy yourself and be kind and calm. The result will be happy cows and more milk.

Skagerrak prawn stocks on the rebound

For years catches of shrimp have been shrinking and fishermen have had good reason to be concerned about their livelihoods. But the crunch on these crustaceans in the Skagerrak seems to be letting up.

Why Japanese connoisseurs love Norwegian mackerel

There's nothing fishy about it: an advanced MRI machine explains exactly why the Japanese prefer Norwegian mackerel. The secret is in the fat.

For Norwegians, healthy food and animal welfare are more important than prices

They want the incomes of farmers to be in line with other social groups – and they shy away from GMOs.

Fishing: Big increase in catch-and-release

Anglers have in the last few years become steadily more likely to release their catches after reeling them in. Most of these fish survive the ordeal, but it is far from painless.

Calves aren’t being given enough milk

Calves are subjected to a feeding regimen that is much too harsh, according to animal husbandry researchers. When allowed to drink as much as they wish the animals get healthier, happier and will yield more meat and milk.

Food security hinges on climate adaptation

Climate change can have a devastating effect on agriculture in many regions. But much can be done to ensure future food supplies for everyone.

Farmed salmon are as fertile as wild salmon

The sperm from farmed male salmon are just as likely as the sperm of wild salmon to succeed in fertilising wild salmon eggs, experiments have shown. Researchers recommend that farmed salmon be made sterile.

Arctic agriculture needs new crops

Countries in the far north need to cultivate new varieties of crops if they hope to main local food production.

More fish found deeper in the ocean

The amount of fish in the world is being reassessed upwards. Some ten billion tonnes of fish that live at depths down to a kilometre are not fished at all. A University of Bergen professor thinks this biomass will be much more important for humankind in the future.

Spawning cod packed with vitamins

Cod migrate from the Barents Sea to the Lofoten Islands in North Norway to spawn every winter. The fishing season for these large spawning cod, called skrei in Norwegian, is currently open. A traditional North Norwegian serving of the fish is a super source of vitamin D.

Biggest threats to farmers have four legs

Big animals are more dangerous for Norwegian farmers than even-bigger tractors, a new analysis shows. Cows are the chief culprits, causing the most work accidents on Norway's farms.

Primitive worms threaten harvests

They live in the soil, are numerous, and can be microscopic. Yet nematodes can effectively kill off fruit trees and cereals.

Norwegians in the dark on red meat's carbon footprint

Confusion reigns when it comes to defining environmental friendly consumption of red meat. Norwegian politicians can’t agree with one another and consumers are ho-hum on the whole issue.

Salmon are shrewder in a natural environment

Juvenile fish get some smarts after spending eight weeks in a more stimulating tank.

Valuable secret hidden in codfish ear collection

Cod have annual growth rings in the bony structures in their ears. Scientists in Greenland have collected these structures for nearly a century and have made a discovery that could help avert a new fisheries collapse.

Counting copepod crap

A mind-boggling array of tasks forms the underpinning of our understanding of the factors that affect the climate, both now and as the planet warms. Danes aboard the Norwegian research vessel G.O. Sars are adding to this knowledge by counting specks of zooplankton faeces.

Creatures from the deep and cold Atlantic sea

Check out what swims around a thousand metres down off Greenland.

A ship loaded with copepods

The sweet smell of plankton envelopes researchers on deck as they haul up buckets of copepods, shrimp, algae and fish. Spring has come to the Labrador Sea. The marine science gold rush is in full swing.

Soviet Cold War oceanographic surveys opened up to western scientists

A treasure trove of Barents Sea fisheries data stored for decades in Murmansk can help determine the fate of future offshore oil and gas exploitation in the region.

Tourists split on Norway’s changing landscape

Nature is reclaiming Norway’s cultural landscape, but tourists are divided on whether this is good or bad.

Larger offspring when fish pick own mates

It might not be so advantageous for us to help endangered animal species by selecting what we consider suitable mates for them.

A cold cure for sick fish

When pipefish are sick, they swim towards cooler water to get better. But what will happen when global warming causes the world's seas to heat up?

Want some week-old fish?

Most of us would refrain from buying fresh fish that was caught more than three days ago. But if we don’t know the day of catch, we gladly consume fish that is much older.

Soft sea slugs pack a hard punch

Sea slugs may sound like they're soft and squishy, but they have poisonous tentacles and eat nearly everything they come across, including each others' eggs. These delicate and often brightly coloured animals are ferocious predators.

Standard research fish lacks a standard diet

Zebrafish have been used as a research standard to help scientists expand our understanding of everything from skin cancers to cardiovascular disease. But one Norwegian researcher cautions that research that relies on zebrafish might be less reliable because the fish are not fed a standardised diet.

The oldest spruce in Northern Europe is 532 years old

Northern Europe’s oldest spruce is still growing strong in a Norwegian forest. It outdates Martin Luther and was a young tree before Columbus reached the Americas.

New gear eases logging operations

New portable gear for cableways makes strenuous Norwegian logging work a little easier.

Damming bogs can curb climate gases

Farmers can help reduce CO2 emissions by restoring bogs which were previously drained for agriculture.

Organic salmon has more Omega-3

A small share of Norwegian farmed salmon is produced organically. The organic product has the same quality as other farmed salmon, but has more Omega-3.

Adapting rice cultivation to climate changes

India’s millions of peasant farmers need to make their rice crops more robust in the face of the climate changes. A Norwegian-Indian project aims to increase crops also when little water is available.

Prospecting herring waste

The messy leftovers from herring processing could be put to better use. Enzymes from the fish parts can soon wind up in detergents or even in juice.

Salmon becomes what it eats

The diet of farmed salmon is no small-fry issue. The quality of the fats and proteins in feeds has quite an impact on the taste of the fish.

De-bugging strawberries and raspberries

Beetles do a lot of damage to Norwegian strawberries and raspberries. Scientists are seeking effective alternatives to insecticide.

Falling lemming populations

Due to irregular winters, the lemming cycle has stopped. This might in time change the whole ecosystem in the Arctic.

Creating sterile farmed fish

Fish spend a great deal of energy in sexual maturation and the aquaculture industry would like to avoid that by raising sterile fish. This would also prevent runaway farmed fish from mixing their genes with wild cousins. Norwegian researchers are on the case.

Researchers don’t really know what prevents predator attacks