Former Mowi CEO set to join Bakkafrost board

Former Mowi CEO Alf-Helge Aarskog looks set to join the board of Faroes salmon producer Bakkafrost. The notice for Bakkafrost’s annual general meeting, which is due to take place on 30 April, includes his name on the list of directors submitted for election. Apart from Aarskog, all the others are existing board members up for…

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Salmon farm staff clear 23 tonnes of litter from Scottish beaches

Volunteers from Scottish salmon farms cleared away more than 23 tonnes of litter from Highlands and islands beaches last year, as part of efforts to keep the areas they live and work clean. Data compiled from last year’s efforts has been published today by industry body Salmon Scotland. Salmon farmers take part in regular beach…

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Marine Fund Scotland has £14m on offer for new ideas

The Scottish Government is calling for innovative ideas to help transform the country’s “Blue Economy” – with £14m in grant funding on offer this year. Applications are invited, from today, for grants from the Marine Fund Scotland, which is now in its fourth year. Addressing the Fisheries Management Scotland conference today, Cabinet Secretary for Rural…

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Brexit ‘costs industry up to £100m a year’, Salmon Scotland chief says

Brexit has cost Scotland up to £100m each year in “lost” salmon exports, according to the industry body, Salmon Scotland. That’s what the organisation’s Chief Executive, Tavish Scott, will be telling MSPs in the Scottish Parliament today. He will be addressing MSPs on the Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee as part of their…

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Underwater Contracting adds more Falcons to its fleet

Scottish-based marine support services business Underwater Contracting (UCO), already owner of the world’s largest fleet of Saab Seaeye Falcon ROVs, has added to its pool through the purchase of five new machines. The deal gives UCO a total of 38 Falcon systems. The company, based in Aberdeen in northeast Scotland, is a leading provider of…

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Grant helps novel sea lice vaccine research to next step

A small sea louse from a salmon river

Hopes for an effective vaccine against sea lice have been boosted with the news of a grant that is helping research into a further stage. Partners from the University of Stirling’s Institute of Aquaculture, AQUATRECK Animal Health SL and Moredun Scientific have been awarded almost £50,000 from the Sustainable Aquaculture Innovation Centre (SAIC), after the…

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Research set to assess benefits of offshore shellfish farming

A new study aims to use tagged lobsters to help assess the positive impact of offshore shellfish aquaculture on marine ecology. Scientists, mussel farmers and fishers on the Devon and Dorset coast are this month beginning the tagging work that will help them assess the impact of offshore aquaculture on the general health of the…

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60-year salmon study helps understand a species under threat

The most detailed long-term study ever carried out of Atlantic salmon in a Scottish river valley has yielded valuable insights, say researchers at the University of Aberdeen. The data covers six decades’ worth of data on salmon populations and river conditions in Girnock Burn, Royal Deeside. Atlantic salmon have long been identified as a threatened…

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‘Green’ eggs make their debut at Barcaldine hatchery

Man inspecting egg tray in darkened room

Scottish Sea Farms has taken delivery of the first batch of “green” eggs at the new £2m incubation unit at the company’s Barcaldine Hatchery. The move is part of a strategy aimed at making the company’s operations more self-reliant in terms of ova supply, and less dependent on imported eggs. “Green eggs” are unfertilised eggs.…

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