Confusion over giant salmon farm in Scotland
A mistaken report suggesting a salmon farm was being planned in Scotland capable of holding “600,000 to 800,000 tonnes of fish” should have stated 6,000 to 8,000 tonnes.
A blog on the Huffington Post website claimed the mega farm was being planned off Orkney or Shetland after it misquoted a story in the Sunday Herald.
Despite the preposterous size of the erroneous farm, it prompted a response from the IFFO’s Neil Auchterlonie. “Having spent many years in Scottish Aquaculture, the description you provide of a salmon farm is unlike any farm I have ever seen in my career and I would question if it exists,” he said. “No commercial farm would be allowed, or could sustain, operation like this.”
The blog stated that environmental groups feared the consequences of sourcing fish feed for such a farm, suggesting it would “generate pollution equivalent in bulk to all of Glasgow’s sewage: six hundred thousand tonnes, more or less”, but Auchterlonie said: “The information presented on fishmeal production completely misses the point that the fishmeal industry is highly regulated, heavily engaged with sustainability agenda, and is a sector where annual volumes of certification of the product is at a high level relative to other feed ingredients.”
