Effect of vaccines against pancreas disease in farmed Atlantic salmon

Pancreas disease (PD) caused by salmonid alphavirus (SAV) continues to negatively impact salmon farming. To assess the effect on growth and mortality of three vaccines against PD, two controlled field designs were employed: one controlled field study with individual marked fish (PIT tag) assessing three PD vaccines and three controls groups, and a second controlled field study with group marked fish (Maxilla) comparing two PD vaccines against controls. In addition, a descriptive study using whole cages compared fish immunized with two different PD vaccines against controls. The target populations experienced a natural PD outbreak where both SAV 2 and SAV 3 were identified. Only one of the PD vaccines provided statistically significant improvements in harvest weight of 0.43 kg (CI: 0.29–0.57) and 0.51 kg (CI: 0.36–0.65) compared with the control in the PIT tag and the Maxilla study, respectively. In the latter, a significant reduction in mortality of 1.31 (CI:0.8–1.8) per cent points was registered for the same vaccine compared with controls. These results aligned with the growth and PD‐specific mortality registered in the descriptive Cage study. The data in this study show a difference in the efficacy of PD vaccines in farmed Atlantic salmon.