MSPs on the Scottish Parliament’s Rural Affairs and Islands Committee are to continue their ongoing work programme looking at the Scottish salmon sector.
Salmon Scotland CEO Tavish Scott has welcomed the move, particularly plans for committee members to visit a salmon farm this autumn to learn more about the reality of salmon farming.
The work is part of an inquiry that first stared in 2018, so it is right for an update to be provided given that Scottish salmon is the UK’s largest food export, generating more than £750 million for the Scottish economy and sustaining around 12,500 jobs.
It is important that MSPs get a full picture of the salmon sector, and don’t just listen to urban-based activists who want to close farms.
You can find our more about the committee and its members and contact details here.
Tavish Scott, chief executive of Salmon Scotland, said:
“As one of the biggest employers in rural Scotland, generating nearly £800 million for the economy and raising the UK’s largest food export, it’s absolutely right for the committee to continue its ongoing work programme to look at our nation’s vital salmon sector.
“We look forward to supporting the committee’s work and highlighting the innovation and investment in making our low carbon sector even more sustainable.
“We are particularly excited about taking committee members to a salmon farm – for many of them for the first time – so they can see for themselves the reality of salmon farming in 2024, and most importantly, listen to the hard-working farmers who take care of their fish and deliver the highest animal welfare standards anywhere in the world.”