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At the same time as salmon fishing starts in Norwegian rivers, the selected broodfish is taken from the sea-pens and placed in fresh water tanks. This is part of the natural reproduction cycle of Atlantic salmon. To secure best possible egg quality that can be delivered on the time requested by our customers, the right combination of photoperiod and temperature must be applied. But the most important took place four years ago when the parents of this year’s broodfish were selected.

The parents of this year’s broodfish were selected on the basis of 10 traits, which can be divided in the following main groups:

• Growth
• Reduced grilsing before market size
• Increased resistance against infectious diseases
  
• Quality (filet colour, shape, total fat, visible fat)

The weight of each trait for selecting the best families is shown in Figure 1.

Figure 1. The weight of each trait when selecting the families for this year's broodfish in Aqua Gen.

The broodfish were selected from families with an average breeding value of 116 (average breeding value for the whole population is 100). This gives an estimated genetic gain for all traits, but the highest for disease resistance and growth.

The majority of broodfish candidates have been graded out during the 4 years since the first feeding in 2002, so that only the best looking and performing fish from the best families have been put into the fresh water tanks for spawning next autumn.