By: Global Salmon Initiative
The Global Salmon Initiative (GSI) published its latest Sustainability Report, marking 13 consecutive years of transparent, aligned reporting on the environmental and social performance of its farmed salmon members. The report covers 11 farming member companies across Canada, Chile, Norway and Tasmania – providing the largest industry-wide data set publicly available.
For the first time, the report includes three new feed metrics: marine ingredients derived from trimmings, inclusion of novel ingredients, and the percentage of low-risk soy used in feed, as well as an expanded metric on the use of new non-medicinal technologies for sea lice management. Together, these additional metrics help provide a clearer baseline of feed evolution, monitor progress, and mobilize collective action to demonstrate continued advancement year on year.
“Responsible feed sourcing is one of the most important ways to reduce aquaculture’s environmental footprint, said Taylor Voorhees, Global Aquaculture Director, The Nature Conservancy. “While the sector has made meaningful gains, progress has not always been easy to track at the necessary level of detail. By introducing these new metrics, GSI members are demonstrating their commitment to sustainability in feed sourcing and providing a clearer picture of improvements across the industry.”
By incorporating these metrics to its long-running, public reporting platform, GSI is building on its common evidence base for improved dialogue, accountability, and continued improvement across the sector to strengthen its role in providing nutrient-rich, sustainable food.
“Aquaculture has an important role to play in building nutritious food systems that provide food security and climate benefits, but its contribution must be backed by robust evidence. Transparent and consistent reporting helps move discussions beyond perceptions and allows progress to be assessed against clear metrics over time.
Initiatives such as GSI’s sustainability reporting can contribute to greater accountability and help stakeholders better understand where improvements are being made and where further effort is needed” added Tom Pickerell, Global Director, Ocean Program, World Resources Institute (WRI).
Key findings from this year’s report include:
- 68% reduction in average antibiotic use for salmonids since 2013, including a 22% reduction in the last five years alone. GSI members continue to reduce antibiotic use through improved holistic fish health management and advanced best-practices.
- 79% reduction in the average use of combined medicinal sea lice treatments since 2013. A result of significant investment in non-medicinal approaches to sea lice management and farm innovations, which are now also reported on in their own metric showing percentage of farms using non-medicinal strategies.
- Since 2013, a 64% decrease in average fishmeal use and a 31% decrease in average fish oil use. A reflection of continued improvements in feed efficiencies and ingredient utilization
- 65% of members’ production is ASC-certified. Calculated as an average across total production, it highlights that almost two-thirds of all GSI production meets the leading global certification program for responsible farmed seafood.
- 21,600+ employees worldwide. Farmed salmon continues to be a major employer in coastal regions. This year, GSI members also expanded their reporting on employment, providing data broken down by age, gender, and employment type. This gives a clearer picture of salmon farming’s contribution to regional employment and community development.
Together, these findings point to a common thread across this year’s report: that measurable progress is built on transparent, consistent data and collective action.
While the report shows the industry’s overall trajectory continuing in the right direction, GSI members are clear that there is more work ahead.
“There is no hiding from the data,” said Sophie Ryan, CEO, GSI. “Every metric in this report – from feed sourcing to antibiotic use, to how many people we employ – exists so we can see clearly where we’ve made progress and where we still have work to do. This year’s new and expanded metrics give us, and our stakeholders, a more complete picture of how our members our performing and where our collective efforts are driving improvements and that’s the kind of data driven progress GSI was built to deliver.”
Alongside company data, the report also highlights farmed salmon’s role in global food systems both from an environmental and nutrition outlook.
“Aquaculture, including farmed salmon, has an important role to play in global food systems,” said João Campari, Global Leader, Food & Agriculture Practice, WWF International. “But like the broader food system, change is needed to bend the curve of biodiversity loss and the lack of green infrastructure that often underpins development in local landscapes and seascapes. What GSI and the results of this Report show us is that pre-competitive collaboration among producers, feed manufacturers, and external partners is what drives change at the speed and scale our planet needs.”
GSI members are committed to farming salmon that is raised to be better, for people and planet, by using transparent reporting to measure progress, foster collaboration, and identify opportunities for continuous improvement.
The full 2025 Sustainability Report, including company-level data deep dive, and a dedicated section on farmed salmon’s role in sustainable food systems is available now at: globalsalmoninitiative.org/en/our-progress/sustainability-report.
ABOUT GSI
Global Salmon Initiative (GSI) is a leadership initiative established in 2013 by global salmon farming CEOs focused on making significant progress on industry sustainability. Today, GSI comprises 17 companies that are fully committed to realizing a shared goal of providing a highly sustainable source of healthy food to feed a growing global population, whilst minimizing our environmental footprint, and continuing to improve our social contributions.
GSI member companies are Australis Seafoods S.A.; Blumar; Cermaq; Salmones Camanchaca SA; Empresas AquaChile; Grieg Seafood ASA, Multi X Foods S.A.; Salmones Austral; Salmones Aysen; Tassal; and Ventisqueros. GSI companies have a presence in Australia, Canada, Chile, and Norway.
GSI also has a number of supply chain Associate Members in both the pharmaceutical and feed industries, including: BioMar; Cargill; Merck, Sharpe and Dohme (MSD) Animal Health; PHARMAQ; Salmofood; and Skretting.
For further information on GSI, please visit or contact us at:
- Website – www.globalsalmoninitiative.org
- LinkedIn – Global Salmon Initiative
- Instagram – @GSI_Salmon
- X – @GSI_Salmon
