Quantification of parasitic sea lice using state-of-the-art environmental DNA technology

Fish farming is a rapidly growing economy and it is currently the second largest export industry in Norway. However, further growth is currently jeopardized by sea lice, a natural ecto-parasite of wild salmonids that has increased in parallel with the industry. The high density of sea lice is a threat to wild salmonid populations and management authorities have therefore introduced a strict control regime. In LICETECH, NINA has optimized sampling-technology and state-of-the-art environmental DNA-analyses for estimating density of sea lice larvae in fish farms. The technology we have developed is a powerful tool for mapping infection pressure within and between fish farms. This tool can for example be utilized for evaluating technical improvements such as skirts and placement of pens and farms, and thus contribute to a sustainable future growth of the fish farming industry.

The fish farming industry represents the second largest export industry in Norway. Sea lice are the single most important factor limiting economic growth at the moment and costs the industry 3-4 billion Norwegian kroner annually. Currently, fish farmers monitor sea lice density by manually counting lice on individual fish once a week throughout the year. This approach is imprecise, extremely labour-intensive and very costly, and a proper tool for indirect monitoring of sea lice is missing. With LICETECH, NINA will use state-of-the-art DNA technology to indirectly quantify the density of sea lice in farms without the need to capture or handle fish. Our technology will provide earlier warning and a more accurate and representative estimate of sea lice infection probability than current methodology. NINA will in collaboration with NTNU Technology Transfer AS establish a spin-off company to commercialize a sea lice quantification service. The preliminary business idea is to offer sampling and lab analysis as a service to fish farmers for accurate quantification of sea lice in net cages. LICETECH will provide a ground-breaking change in sea lice monitoring and provide a high-quality scientific basis for a sustainable future growth of the fish farming industry.