Norcod identified the presence of Francisella bacteria at its Mausund farm site following testing carried out in connection with planned fish harvesting.
The site contains four pens in total, with the bacterium detected in individual fish from one pen currently being harvested.
Francisella noatunensis is a notifiable bacterium in cod with no available vaccine or medical treatment, though it has predominantly been found in farms further south and marks the first detection at a Norcod site.
Mortality among the harvested stock has shown no significant increase, and the company stated that the detection is not expected to affect planned operations, harvest volumes or projected growth plans.
Under established procedures and regulatory requirements, the company said that monitoring will continue throughout the remaining harvesting period as work on the affected pen finishes in the next two weeks.
“The fish at Mausund are already being harvested as planned and, based on what we are seeing today, we do not expect this to have any notable impact on mortality, our operations or projected growth plan,” said Chief Executive Officer Christian Riber.