Gael Force’s vision for growth

INVERNESS based equipment supplier Gael Force Group recorded a £7 million increase in turnover last year and almost quadrupled its profits. Accounts for the group, lodged with Companies House, showed its pre-tax profits rose to £1.6 million in the year to the end of last December from £439,083 in the previous 12 months. Its turnover…

Read More

River owning MSP ‘ambushes’ salmon probe

THE convenor of Holyrood’s Rural Economy and Connectivity (REC) committee has been accused of ‘ambushing’ its draft report on the future of salmon farming to protect his angling interests. According to a report in today’s Herald, Sir Edward Mountain, the Conservative MSP for Highlands and Islands and a baronet, sprang a list of suggestions on…

Read More

Activist breaks into Scottish salmon farm

A SCOTTISH salmon farmer has been targeted by an activist who broke into a farm site without permission to take underwater photographs. The Scottish Salmon Company said it was approached by the Scottish SPCA (Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals) earlier this week with pictures taken by an unnamed photographer, allegedly at one…

Read More

Nominate top aquaculture trainees now

THE search is on for Scotland’s top rural trainees as Lantra launches its Land-based and Aquaculture Learner of the Year Awards for 2019. Nominations officially opened yesterday and rural employers, colleges and schools are being asked to put forward their best learners. The awards offer trainees of all ages a springboard to succeed in their…

Read More

Volumes down, costs up in MH Scotland

MARINE Harvest today announced a strong performance for the second quarter of this year, with an operating profit or EBIT (earnings before interest and tax) of €175 million. But there was a ‘significant decrease’ in harvest volumes in Scotland and biological costs were up 33 per cent compared to the same period last year. The…

Read More

Scots seafood firms fly the flag in Japan

SCOTLAND’S biggest seafood companies are in Tokyo this week to help promote international exports, which rose 23 per cent last year to £944 million. Salmon farmers such as Marine Harvest and the Scottish Salmon Company are attending the Japan Seafood Expo 2018, which runs from August 22-24. The firms represent the largest Scottish delegation yet…

Read More

Sharing salmon expertise a ‘win-win’

THE Global Salmon Initiative, set up to improve sustainability in the sector, marked its fifth anniversary yesterday. The group, which now represents 50 per cent of world salmon production, brings together the CEOs of many of the biggest farming companies, as well as feed and pharmaceutical interests, to shape the future direction of the industry.…

Read More

Lumpfish farmer plans £1m expansion

ANGLESEY based lumpfish producer Ocean Matters is planning to expand after securing £1 million finance from the Development Bank of Wales and HSBC, Wales Online reported yesterday. The farmer, located in Penmon, said it would be able to double its current lumpfish production capacity from two million to four million in an effort to meet…

Read More

Major milestone in sea lice control

ANOTHER milestone has been reached in the production of cleaner fish in Scotland, with two leading farmers completing the lifecycle of raising wrasse in a controlled environment. In a collaboration between Marine Harvest, Scottish Sea Farms and the Institute of Aquaculture at the University of Stirling, wild caught ballan wrasse (Labrus bergylta) have been bred…

Read More

Go ahead for Marine Harvest expansion

MARINE Harvest has won the go ahead to expand two of its farms in Argyll, the Oban Times reported. The company’s plans to merge five sites into four were approved by Argyll and Bute Council at the end of June. In one application, Marine Harvest sought to modify 16 x 100m cages into 12 x…

Read More