Transition Pathways for the Farmed Salmon Value Chain: Industry Perspectives and Sustainability Implications

Abstract

Salmon is the most consumed farmed seafood in the EU and there is no indication that demand will abate. Yet salmon aquaculture’s environmental impacts are significant, and its future is likely to be shaped by demands of increased but at the same time more sustainable production. This study developed an integrated theoretical framework based on the multi-level perspective (MLP) and a global value chain (GVC) governance framework and applied it to the global farmed salmon value chain. The objective was to provide insights on the most likely transition pathway towards sustainability based on industry and expert perspectives. The perceptions on challenges and drivers of change, were gathered through focus groups and in-depth interviews, and fitted to the integrated framework to facilitate the transition pathway analysis. Viewing the qualitative findings in the context of the MLP framework provided information about the current workings of the system, the drivers of change in the socio-technical landscape and niche-innovations and their potential to challenge or enhance the current system and thus indicated possible system transitions. To emphasize the role of industry actors in shaping the future of the salmon value chain, the analysis was strengthened using the GVC model which added information about power relations, signaling the ability of system actors to motivate or resist change. The findings indicate that, due to resistance in the regime and the fact that niche-innovations are not yet sufficiently developed, the farmed salmon value chain will continue to be predominated by traditional sea-based aquaculture but that there will be a gradual shift towards more diversity in terms of production methods in response to landscape pressures. The discussion addresses sustainability challenges and policy implications for the farmed salmon value chain and highlights the need for a food system perspective.

Conceptual System Dynamics and Agent-Based Modelling Simulation of Interorganisational Fairness in Food Value Chains: Research Agenda and Case Studies

“…This included scenario work to describe sustainable transitions of food systems while considering simultaneously socio-economic and environmental issues in a just transition perspective. A design of "just transition pathways" were elucidated through a methodological framework including quantification of employment until 2030 for the French Dairy Sector, using the decarbonation pathway for the agricultural sector issued from the French National Low-Carbon Strategy as reference [102]. As mentioned earlier the needs of this work fed into the specifications of the conceptual modelling described in this paper.…”

Agri-food systems in sustainability transition: a systematic literature review on recent developments on the use of the multi-level perspective

“…It can be assumed that the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) has contributed to this by emphasizing agroecology's role to achieve sustainable agricultural systems (FAO, 2018b). Gudbrandsdottir et al (2021), Wöhler et al (2020), andSanon et al (2021) laid focus on the aquatic environment, concentrating on fishery and pharmaceutical exposure. Policies were a matter of interest on EU and national levels (cf.…”

“…Power relations and structures of governance or politics are the most prominent (cf. Rut and Davies, 2018;Anderson et al, 2019;De Herde et al, 2020;Gudbrandsdottir et al, 2021;Leeuwis et al, 2021;Wieliczko et al, 2021;Boillat et al, 2022). For instance, Deviney et al (2020) focus on manure management impacting the health of people and the planet, and on decision-making processes in general.…”

“…For instance, a strong government presence or authoritarian control causes significant challenges in the development of radical socio-technical regime divergences (Rut and Davies, 2018). If reference is given to the size (1) of the niche, the authors refer to a rather small network of actors without specifying concrete numbers (Bui, 2021;Gudbrandsdottir et al, 2021;Salavisa et al, 2021;Costa et al, 2022). For instance, Bui (2021) underscores that niches are smaller than the regime and Özatagan and Karakaya Ayalp (2021) pertain to "individual and isolated practices" (p. 283), probably in the sense of individual initiatives whereas other authors see the possibility of multiple initiatives within the niche (e.g., Gugerell and Penker, 2020).…”

Behavioral transcriptomic effects of triploidy and probiotic therapy (Bifidobacterium, Lactobacillus, and Lactococcus mixture) on juvenile Chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha)

“…Due to growth in the human population, 1 an increase in production of fish for human consumption 2 has been necessary to meet increasing demands, 3,4 surpassing the production levels of capture fishing practices 2,5 . To ensure sustainable food production while meeting animal welfare needs, 6 advances in technologies, including producing polyploid individuals, have been employed 7 . In particular, triploidization is a widespread aquaculture technique used to induce sterility to increase the harvestable mass of individuals 8,9 and reduce the environmental impacts of escapees from farms 10,11 .…”