Scottish Aquaculture awards to be annual and open to all
The organiser of the biennial Scottish Marine Aquaculture Awards has decided to hold the awards annually and throw them open to entrants from overseas.
Benchmark subsidiary 5m Publishing made the decision following the success of the awards at the Aquaculture 2018 trade show and seminar in Aviemore. Until now the awards have been held in conjunction with that event, which takes place every two years, and have only been open to UK entrants.
The next round of the awards will take place at a presentation dinner at Dynamic Earth in Edinburgh on May 29 next year. They are open to everyone involved in the global aquaculture industry, no matter how large or small.
International involvement
“The 2018 awards were hugely successful - attracting a record number of entrants from around the UK - and we’re keen to encourage international involvement this time too. The annual awards are now open to participants in the sector from around the world,” said 5m’s sales and marketing director Matt Colvan.
The awards categories are different to those that have been used previously.
“We have established a new set of categories which have a greater emphasis on sustainable farming practices, cutting-edge research and technological innovation,” said Susan Tinch, event organiser, “and we are delighted that the sector’s leading international businesses are supporting the new awards.”
The categories are:
- Applied research breakthrough: open to any research project involving collaboration between the industry and academic sectors.
- Sustainability: for a consistent contribution to the environmental, ethical and economic sustainability of the industry.
- International impact: companies and/or new initiatives with a truly international impact.
- People’s choice: individuals are invited to nominate a person from within the sector whose attitude and achievements in the last 12 months have been particularly inspirational. The public will then be able to vote for anyone from the shortlist.
- Most promising new entrant: nominations sought for people, companies or products that have arrived on the aquaculture scene since January 2018.
- Animal welfare: any initiative that has improved the welfare of the farmed animals and/or the wildlife they interact with since January 2018.
- Tech/data innovation: novel hardware or software that has, or is projected to, improve the performance of any aquaculture sector.
- Diversity: the employer, individual or organisation that has done the most to promote diversity in their workforce and/or the sector in general since January 2018.
To find out more detail about the categories and to enter or nominate visit the website here.
The closing date for entries is March 1, 2019, and the shortlists will be announced in early April.
The presentation dinner on May 29 will be preceded by a half-day seminar, details of which will be announced shortly.
