Latin name – Gadus morhua
Taxonomic Code : 1480400202
Production (EU-27) – 2560 t (2007); 21% of global production
Value (EU-27) – EUR 9.2 million (2007)
Main EU producer countries – Ireland, United Kingdom.
Main producer countries worldwide – Norway, Iceland, Ireland, United Kingdom.

Local Names
CANADA : Cod
DENMARK : Torsk
FRANCE : Morue
GERMANY : Dorsch,  Kabeljau
NETHERLANDS : Kabel1auw
NORWAY : Skrei ,  Torsk
SCANDINAVIA : Torsk
UK : Cod
USA : Cod
RUSSIA FEDERATION: Treska

Diagnostic Features
Head relatively narrow, inter orbital space 15 to 22% of head length. Predorsal distance less than about 33% of length;  Color: variable, brownish to greenish or grey dorsally and on upper side, pale ventrally. Peritoneum silvery. 

Habitat and Biology

Atlantic cod has a wide distribution on both sides of the Atlantic Ocean. At the western side it ranges from Cape Hatteras in the south to around Greenland in the north, and on the eastern cost from Biscaya in south to the Barents Sea in North. Within this area cod may tolerate summer temperatures over 20 °C and winter temperatures around zero. Even though cod in some areas, like the Gulf of Bothnia, may tolerate very low salinities (<10‰) most cod stocks experience much higher salinities (28-35‰).

Cod is a batch spawner, spawning 10-20 batches during a 2-3 month period in December – June (dependent on stock). Egg size is around 1.4 mm and fecundity accordingly high (500 000–1 000 000 eggs per kg female weight for farmed cod). The eggs are planktonic and hatch after approximately two weeks (5 °C, 70 day-degrees). The larvae prey on various zooplankton (rotifers, calanoid copepod nauplii, etc.) at first. After a few months the juveniles become more benthic and start schooling. Juvenile and adult cod prey on a variety of prey items, both benthic and pelagic; crustaceans and fish (including cannibalism) are usually the main diet. Some cod stocks perform large migrations between feeding in the ocean and spawning along the coast, while other stocks are very stationary during their whole life. Growth and age/size at maturity also vary widely between different cod stocks. Coastal cod in the southern regions may reach sexual maturity when they are 2-4 years old (40 cm) while some oceanic stocks, such as North East Arctic cod may be 6-9 years and 60 cm at their first spawning.

Market And Trade

Traditionally, wild cod has many applications. Farmed cod are almost exclusively sold fresh and gutted or as fillets/loins. Pre-rigor filleting can give more value to farmed cod related to wild cod. Salted cod from aquaculture may also have a potential in the future. Most of the Norwegian production is exported to the rest of Europe.

As opposed to many other aquaculture species, Atlantic cod aquaculture products are competing with cod from a large traditional fishery. Annual landings of cod are around 800,000 tones, 40 times the current production from aquaculture. However, the fishery is partly seasonal and has not the same possibility to deliver stable quantities and qualities throughout the year as aquaculture. Thus, farmed cod have some benefits that may compensate for the usually much higher production costs compared to wild caught cod. Most of the cod from aquaculture are therefore sold as fresh fish, either as fillets or loins or exported as whole fish and refined closer to the market. Norway, as the main producing country, exports about 80 per cent of its farmed cod. The main markets are Denmark, Sweden, France, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands and others.

Another issue for cod products is the competition from aquaculture ‘commodity species’. For example, Pangasius spp., farmed mainly in Viet Nam, has recently become popular in Europe due to its very low price, and may to some extent reduce the sale of more expensive species like cod.

Atlantic cod is well known and highly appreciated as food in most European countries and also in parts of North America and other countries like Brazil. The market size is thus not a limiting factor for cod aquaculture but currently high production costs make it difficult to compete with cod from traditional fisheries and with other cultured species.

Status and trends

Cod aquaculture is a new industry that still has significant challenges in terms of understanding basic biological issues and developing production methods and protocols that ensure a stable and profitable production. A boom-like investment period during 2000-2008 and rapid biomass build-up was followed by an almost collapse after the financial crisis in 2008. It is likely that the growth in cod aquaculture production will be much slower than expected a few years ago, and the structure of the industry is currently quite unclear.

The major biological bottlenecks in cod farming are juvenile quality, early sexual maturation and diseases. Despite huge progress in intensive rearing protocols during recent years there are still some problems with bone deformities and low growth in farmed cod. These problems can be manifested at later stages, making it more difficult to sort out these individuals from the production at the hatchery. Thus low quality juveniles can significantly reduce the profitability for the farmers. It is likely that these problems will become less obvious as rearing protocols and larval feeds develop further.

Early sexual maturation is a common problem in aquaculture, including cod farming. The fish invest their energy in producing gonads to the expense of somatic growth. This reduces the profit for the farmer since the production cycle will be longer, feed conversation will decrease and mortality will increase. Additional light during on growing in cages reduces maturation, but does not stop it. Other methods, such as the production of all-female / triploid populations are under development; these may eliminate this problem within some years. However, it is not clear to what extent the market will accept such fish.

The development of efficient vaccines against the major disease threats is a prerequisite for the further development of cod aquaculture. Breeding programs have started, both in Norway and in Canada, and within few years these will contribute to increased growth, better disease resistance and delayed maturation in farmed cod.

Main issues

Aquaculture does interfere with the environment, wild populations or alternative uses of the coast. Several critical issues have been raised regarding cod aquaculture practice. The use of antibiotics in its production has been much higher in cod aquaculture compared to salmon aquaculture. Much of this is a result of a rapid growth of the industry and the appearance of new diseases. Further vaccine development will be necessary in order to reduce the use of antibiotics to an acceptable level. Cod easily find small holes in the net and are very good at escaping. This has been of great concern, particularly among fishermen. The spread of diseases and genetic material is not desirable and strict quality control of the nets and cage constructions are needed to minimize this problem. Mature cod will spawn in the cages, thus spreading fertilized eggs to the environment. This is another reason why reducing early sexual maturation would be valuable.



FAO. © 9-2011. A world overview of species of interest to fisheries. Gadus morhua. FIGIS Species Fact Sheets. Text by SIDP - Species Identification and Data Programme. In: FAO Fisheries and Aquaculture Department [online]. Rome. Updated 2001. [Cited 12 September 2011]. http://www.fao.org/fishery/culturedspecies/Gadus_morhua/en

http://ec.europa.eu/fisheries/marine_species/farmed_fish_and_shellfish/cod/index_en.htm