October 1, 2026
Three Faroese farming sites achieve certification as Bakkafrost begins transition from the ASC Salmon Standard to ASC’s global Farm Standard
Bakkafrost has become the first Atlantic Salmon producer in the world to have farms certified against the Aquaculture Stewardship Council Farm Standard, marking an important milestone in the transition of the salmon sector to ASC’s global framework for farm certification.
Bakkafrost has long been at the forefront of the salmon industry and has chosen to adopt the ASC Farm Standard well ahead of the transition deadline. The experience with ASC certification and established management systems provided a strong foundation for the early transition, while supporting further alignment of risk management, performance measurement, transparency and continuous improvement.
Three Bakkafrost farming sites in the Faroe Islands have now achieved certification against the Farm Standard, and the company is progressing the transition of its remaining farming sites in the Faroe Islands and Scotland.
The achievement builds on more than a decade of ASC certification at Bakkafrost. Its Gøtuvík farm became the first ASC-certified salmon farm in the Faroe Islands in 2015. In April 2026, the Group announced that 100% of its salmon farming operations in the Faroe Islands and Scotland were ASC-certified.
Chris Ninnes, CEO of ASC, said, “Bakkafrost becoming the first salmon producer to have farms certified against the ASC Farm Standard is an important milestone for ASC and demonstrates Bakkafrost’s leading role in the salmon sector.
“As an early adopter, Bakkafrost has invested significant time and effort in working through the transition, and we recognise the commitment this has required. Their experience has also been invaluable for ASC, giving us practical insights into how the Farm Standard is implemented within an established salmon farming operation and where we can continue to improve the transition process.
“This is the kind of collaboration that helps make a global standard work in practice. Bakkafrost’s experience will provide important learnings as more salmon producers begin their transition.”
Anna Johansen, Group QESH Director at Bakkafrost, said, “This is an important milestone for Bakkafrost and our farming organisation. The ASC Farm Standard offers a broader, more integrated framework for managing environmental performance, fish health and welfare, social responsibility and operational risks.
“Our long experience with ASC certification and established management systems gave us a strong foundation for meeting the requirements. The transition has also helped us strengthen our systems, improve transparency and establish a clearer basis for measuring performance and driving continuous improvement.”
The ASC Farm Standard marks a significant evolution in aquaculture certification, bringing ASC’s species-specific farm standards together into one rigorous, science-based framework.
For the salmon industry, the Farm Standard strengthens requirements for fish health and welfare, including handling, disease prevention and treatment use. It also maintains restrictions on siting in protected areas and introduces a tiered approach to seabed-impact monitoring, alongside strengthened requirements for sensitive water bodies and data sharing.
The Farm Standard also strengthens social requirements covering workers’ rights, health and safety, and community impacts. By combining these requirements within a streamlined framework that can be applied across species and farming systems, the Farm Standard provides a consistent basis for measuring performance and driving improvement across aquaculture.
It places a strong emphasis on documented risk management, measurable performance, clear responsibilities, transparency and continuous improvement. For established ASC-certified salmon producers such as Bakkafrost, the transition builds on existing certification while requiring farms to demonstrate their performance against this integrated set of requirements.
Bakkafrost is a strong example of championing change through long-term commitment and continuous improvement. After more than a decade of ASC certification and achieving 100% ASC certification across its salmon farming operations, Bakkafrost is now the first salmon producer to have farms certified against the ASC Farm Standard, using the transition to further strengthen risk management, performance measurement and transparency.
This milestone forms part of wider progress across ASC-certified salmon farming. In 2025, 802 ASC-certified salmon farms across nine countries recorded 1,417 environmental and 743 social improvements, demonstrating measurable progress across a global industry. Improvements included actions supporting biodiversity, fish health and welfare, communities and climate performance.
Laetitia Rosing, Producer Outreach & Regional Manager Nordics at ASC, said, “Certification plays an important role in the Nordic salmon sector, where producers are operating in a market with high expectations for environmental performance, fish health and welfare, and social responsibility. Bakkafrost’s early transition to the ASC Farm Standard shows how established producers can use certification as a framework to demonstrate performance against these expectations.
“For producers, the Farm Standard brings these areas together within one framework, providing a consistent way to identify risks, measure performance and demonstrate progress. Bakkafrost’s transition is an important step as the Nordic salmon sector moves towards this next generation of ASC certification.”
“This reflects what we see across the ASC programme: in 2025, nearly 7,000 environmental and social improvements were recorded at ASC-certified farms worldwide. Bakkafrost’s transition shows how established producers can build on strong foundations and continue raising the bar.”
Bakkafrost is the first salmon producer to have farms certified against the Farm Standard, forming part of its growing global implementation.
The first farm achieved certification against the ASC Farm Standard in March 2026. Farms in Spain, Norway and Thailand have since achieved certification across different species and production systems. The certification of three Bakkafrost sites now brings salmon into this growing group.
Go directly to content
