The company Bohus Havsbruk established itself in the 2010s and invested in cultivated mussels, which they believed was an industry of the future.

But since then, the company has endured fierce criticism in recent years since parts of the farms have worn out and divers have filmed the bottom.

Last year, the Swedish Board of Agriculture began examining Bohus Havsbruk and the almost SEK 30 million they have been granted in support.

This led to the authority demanding SEK 3.7 million back.

But now completely new repayment claims - for a much larger amount - can be placed on the mussel company.

Cultures are sentenced

During the late summer of 2020, the Swedish Board of Agriculture re-examined all the company's crops on site.

In the reports that SVT has read, all crops were condemned.

In the first phase, the Swedish Board of Agriculture has announced to Bohus Havsbruk that it intends to reclaim all paid support for three of the projects that are linked to the farms.

In total, this amounts to just over ten million kronor.

- We continue to work with this, now we are waiting for Bohus Havsbruk's answer before we make a formal decision, says Simon Löfgren, at the Swedish Board of Agriculture.

Lack of oxygen and dead bottom

In one project, SEK 6.5 million has been received for large-scale mussel production.

But after the authority has been in place, they write, among other things:

The cultivation has deteriorated even more since the last inspection on 19 September 2019 [...] The cultivation has largely failed with visible breaks in the pipes.

The divers and so also the films confirm Bottom conditions with White overgrown "carpet" which shows a lack of oxygen and dead bottom.

Bohus Havsbruk believes that the plantations should not look like the pictures show due to lime worm growth, and that restoration work is underway.

- We work according to the restoration plan that was sent to the County Administrative Board, writes co-owner Per Persson in a comment.

No legal right

It also rejects the assessment and the requirement that the Swedish Board of Agriculture threatens with.

- However, the Swedish Board of Agriculture has no legal right to recover the two company grants and the project grants that the communications concern and we are sure of our case that we will not be forced to repay these amounts.

Why the Swedish Board of Agriculture acts in this way, we can only speculate.

The mussel company has received around SEK 30 million in granted support distributed over 17 projects, of which around SEK 20 million has been paid out.

Watch videos from the mussel farms from last year if led to the company being reviewed

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Cilla Persson discovered what mussel farming looked like under the surface.

Photo: SVT / Divers against ghost net