"Laxaþjóð - A Salmon Nation", a documentary about the struggle to protect Iceland's waters and wild salmon from industrial fish farms.

• The new documentary highlights the environmental cost of salmon fishing.

The sportswear company, Patagonia, releases its new documentary, Laxaþjóð - A Salmon NationThe report on the fight to protect Iceland's pristine waters and wild salmon from industrial salmon farms in open water.

The campaign calls on the Icelandic government to show leadership in Europe by banning open water salmon farms along its coastline.

The 27-minute documentary tells the story of a country united by its lands and waters, and the power of a community working to protect the nature and wildlife that have helped forge the nation's identity. It will be premiered at a public event in Reykjavik and online, as part of an international campaign to raise awareness of the damage caused by open water farms to wild fish, natural environments and farm animals.

Yvon Chouinard, founder of Patagonia, said:

"Since my first trip to Iceland in 1960, we have seen wild salmon stocks dwindle and now, if the salmon farming industry is allowed to continue on the same path, wild species will be consigned to history and unspoilt nature will be ruined. This has already happened in the UK and Norway.

In Iceland, as elsewhere, the economy revolves around nature, not the other way around. If we destroy nature, we will destroy our economy. It will take vision and leadership to reverse the damage, but we know it can be done.

Fighting for a better future for Iceland

The farmed salmon industry is growing in the fjords of Iceland, where huge sea cages in open water house millions of farmed fish. These cages allow disease and pollution free flow into the immediate environment, where wild salmon and sea trout struggle to survive.

A new aquaculture bill, which is being drafted for approval this year, could immediately establish greater environmental regulation and stricter animal welfare standards for open-water salmon farms in Iceland, with a transition to a total ban in the future.

The launch of Laxaþjóð - A Salmon Nation follows the publication of the draft bill, to which Icelanders have responded through a public consultation period. This process has broken records in Iceland with over 300 comments, the largest number of public comments in history, including statements from Patagonia founder Yvon Chouinard and CEO Ryan Gellert.

NGOs fighting to protect Iceland's waters and wild salmon stocks, including organisations funded by Patagonia, Icelandic Wildlife Fund (IWF) y North Atlantic Salmon Fund (NASF)have expressed their deep concern about the current draft.

Jón Kaldal of the Icelandic Wildlife Fund commented:

"The draft aquaculture bill lacks the ambition to promote a better future for Iceland. It allows excessively high mortality rates and provides for too light penalties for offenders. It also relies too heavily on industry self-reporting, which in the past has led to companies withholding information or disseminating inaccurate data. The Icelandic government must go further to address the current shortcomings of the draft bill in the final bill".

The problem of salmon farms in Europe
 
Outside Iceland, the farmed salmon sector is booming throughout Europe, particularly in Norway, Scotland and Ireland, driven by predominantly Norwegian business interests. Global salmon consumption is three times higher than in 1980 (source: https://www.worldwildlife.org/industries/farmed-salmon). As production grows, so does consumption.

Since 2019, when the global campaign was launched Artifishal Patagonia's Laxaþjóð - A Salmon Nation, the company has raised the alarm about the endangerment of wild salmon due to the threats posed by ocean farms and hatcheries. Five years later, with Laxaþjóð - A Salmon Nation, Patagonia is calling on the Icelandic government to show leadership in Europe by banning new open ocean sea cage salmon farms and phasing out existing ones.

In addition to supporting IWF and NASF in Iceland, Patagonia supports several NGOs across Europe in their local campaigns against open water salmon farms, through partners. 
as Inside Scottish Salmon Feedlots y Wild Fish through grants from 1% for the Planet.
 
The campaign against salmon farms is supported by public personalities, such as the artist and musician Björk, who is donating the profits from her latest song, Orala collaboration with Spanish artist Rosalía, to support the cause. Oral can be heard on Laxaþjóð - A Salmon Nation.

Support the campaign, sign the petition and enjoy Laxaþjóð - A Salmon Nation here.