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Publication - Statistics

Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2021

Published
27 October 2022
Directorate
Marine Directorate
Topic
Marine and fisheries
ISBN
9781805250517

This report is based on the returns of an annual survey questionnaire sent to all active authorised fish farming businesses in Scotland during 2021. Statistics on employment, production and value are presented.

View supporting documents Supporting documents

2. Atlantic Salmon (Salmo salar) - Ova and Smolts

Production survey information was collected from all 22 companies actively involved in the freshwater production of Atlantic salmon, farming 74 active sites. This figure represents the entire freshwater industry operating in Scotland.

Company and Site Data

Table 12: Number of companies and sites in production during 2012-2021
Year No. of companies No. of sites
2012 28 100
2013 27 102
2014 26 96
2015 25 87
2016 26 87
2017 24 79
2018 24 71
2019 23 76
2020 24 78
2021 22 74

In 2021, the number of companies authorised by the Scottish Government for freshwater production of Atlantic salmon decreased by two to 22. A total of 74 sites were actively engaged in commercial production, a decrease of four from the 2020 figure.

Production and Staffing

Table 13: Number (000’s) of smolts produced, staff employed and smolt productivity during 2012-2021
Year Number (000’s) of Smolts produced Full-time Male Full-time Female Total Full-time Part-time Male Part-time Female Total Part-time Total Staff Productivity (000’s) smolts per person
2012 44,324 218 17 235 60 33 93 328 135.1
2013 40,457 226 11 237 29 19 48 285 142.0
2014 45,004 226 18 244 42 23 65 309 145.6
2015 44,571 208 31 239 41 14 55 294 151.6
2016 42,894 225 27 252 35 7 42 294 145.9
2017 46,152 219 31 250 33 8 41 291 158.6
2018 47,097 210 29 239 30 9 39 278 169.4
2019 51,430 215 32 247 26 8 34 281 183.0
2020 50,492 233 30 263 23 6 29 292 172.9
2021 51,198 229 33 262 18 11 29 291 175.9

Smolt production in 2021 increased by 1% compared to 2020. The number of staff employed in 2021 decreased by one and productivity increased by 2% to a figure of 175,900 smolts produced per person.

Data for staffing and productivity in 2013 are shown, however, there are uncertainties with these data due to consolidation within the industry.

Smolts by Age Group

Table 14: Number of smolts (000’s) produced by type during 2012-2021
Year S½ S1 S1½ Total
2012 18,795 25,239 290 44,324
2013 19,024 21,279 154 40,457
2014 22,367 22,473 164 45,004
2015 23,850 20,711 10 44,571
2016 25,072 17,822 0 42,894
2017 28,072 18,080 0 46,152
2018 24,058 23,039 0 47,097
2019 25,607 25,823 0 51,430
2020 22,872 27,620 0 50,492
2021 30,175 20,709 314 51,198

In 2021, there was an increase of 32% in the number of S½ smolts produced and a decrease of 25% in the number of S1 smolts produced. In 2021 there was also production of S1½ smolts which accounted for less than 1% of all smolts produced.

Production Systems

Table 15: Number and capacity of production systems during 2017-2021
System No. of sites with system Total capacity, 000’s cubic metres
Year 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Cages 36 27 27 27 26 357 346 351 379 374
Tanks and Raceways 43 44 49 51 48 55 54 68 62 65
Total 79 71 76 78 74 412 400 419 441 439

The types of facility used for the production of smolts in freshwater are cages or tanks and raceways. In 2021, the number of farms using cages deceased by one and the number of farms using tanks and raceways decreased by three. In terms of volume, cage capacity decreased by 5,000 m³ and tank and raceway capacity increased by 3,000 m³. This resulted in a net decrease in volume of 2,000 m³ available for the production of smolts in Scotland during 2021.

Table 16: Number (000’s) of smolts produced and stocking densities by production system during 2017-2021
Number of smolts produced (000’s) Stocking densities (smolts/m 3 )
Year 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
Cages 17,207 21,771 18,964 18,331 19,344 48 63 54 48 52
All others 28,945 25,326 32,466 32,161 31,854 526 469 477 519 490
Total 46,152 47,097 51,430 50,492 51,198 - - - - -

The average stocking densities of cages increased from 48 to 52 smolts per m³ in 2021 compared to 2020, while densities in tanks and raceways decreased from 519 to 490 smolts per m³.

Ova Production

Table 17: Number (000’s) of salmon ova produced during 2012-2021
Year 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
No. of ova 57,489 56,904 33,450 11,605 13,689 12,631 15,228 11,618 20,021 46,255

In 2021, over 46 million ova were stripped, an increase of 131% from the number of ova produced in 2020.

Table 18: Source, number (000’s), previous year’s estimate of ova laid down to hatch during 2012-2021 and projected production for 2022
Year In-house broodstock Out-sourced GB broodstock GB wild broodstock Foreign ova Total Previous year's estimate
2012 18,556 9,981 0 34,700 63,237 55,723
2013 16,996 8,263 0 41,315 66,573 49,249
2014 14,418 2,725 10 53,684 70,837 48,149
2015 6,479 223 10 61,463 68,175 65,284
2016 5,884 4 0 58,458 64,346 59,604
2017 6,228 360 0 59,158 65,746 60,673
2018 8,780 200 0 61,499 70,479 67,374
2019 5,516 1,724 75 63,931 71,246 71,571
2020 5,195 4,480 258 68,685 78,618 70,598
2021 6,383 22,581 124 43,707 72,795 68,588
2022 77,306

The number of ova laid down to hatch was 72.8 million, a decrease of 5.8 million (7%) on the 2020 figure. The majority of the ova (60%) were derived from foreign sources, this being a decrease of 25 million (36%) on the 2020 figure. Supplies derived from GB broodstock (excluding wild origin ova) increased by 19.3 million, a 199% increase on the 2020 figure. In 2021, 124,000 ova from GB wild broodstock were laid down to hatch, ova derived from wild stocks are generally held and hatched for wild stock enhancement by the aquaculture industry in cooperation with wild fisheries managers.

Smolts Produced and Put to Sea

Table 19: Actual and projected smolt production and smolts put to sea (millions) during 2012-2023
2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Actual smolts put to sea 41.1 40.9 48.1 45.5 43.0 46.1 45.5 53.0 52.5 51.1
Smolts produced 44.3 40.5 45.0 44.6 42.9 46.2 47.1 51.4 50.5 51.2
Estimated production 31.3 28.1 39.9 43.4 36.6 39.3 46.1 38.6 52.1 55.6 54.1 55.6
Ratio of ova laid down to smolts produced 1.4 1.6 1.6 1.5 1.5 1.4 1.5 1.4 1.6 1.4

The figure for the number of smolts put to sea includes smolts produced in England and smolts imported from elsewhere, whereas smolt production data relate only to those produced in Scotland. Smolt producers estimate putting 54.1 million smolts to sea in 2022. The ratio of ova laid down to hatch to smolts produced in 2021 was less than the ratio in 2020.

Scale of Production

Table 20: Smolt-producing sites grouped by numbers (000’s) of smolts produced during 2012‑2021
Year Scale of production No. of sites in production Total smolts produced
1-10 11-25 26-50 51-100 101-250 251-500 501-1,000 >1,000
2012 0 0 1 3 19 14 11 13 61 44,324
2013 1 0 1 7 14 14 7 14 58 40,457
2014 0 0 2 1 11 9 14 13 50 45,004
2015 1 1 2 4 9 11 16 11 55 44,571
2016 1 1 0 3 7 11 13 12 48 42,894
2017 1 0 0 2 6 11 10 15 45 46,152
2018 0 1 0 0 6 9 14 12 42 47,097
2019 1 0 0 2 8 8 10 16 45 51,430
2020 1 1 0 4 4 5 10 16 41 50,492
2021 1 0 0 2 6 5 9 16 39 51,198

Note: These data refer only to sites producing smolts. The sites holding only ova, fry or parr are excluded.

The number of sites producing smolts in 2021 was 39. The number of sites producing less than 101,000 smolts decreased by three while the number of sites producing between 101,000 and one million smolts per year increased by one. The number of sites producing in excess of one million smolts per year remained at 16 sites.

Production of Ova and Smolt by Production Area

Table 21: Staffing in 2021, ova laid down to hatch in 2020-2021, smolt production in 2020-2021 and estimated production in 2022-2023 by region
Region Number of staff employed in 2021 Ova laid down to hatch (000’s) Smolt production (000’s) Estimated smolt production (000’s)
F/T P/T 2020 2021 2020 2021 2022 2023
North West 142 12 42,702 39,077 26,308 28,369 30,517 30,657
Orkney 1 3 100 175 97 111 0 130
Shetland 25 1 5,948 4,239 3,804 2,905 2,865 4,300
West 66 6 23,810 24,766 16,213 16,063 17,529 17,564
Western Isles 24 4 5,738 4,493 3,247 2,695 2,210 2,235
East and South 4 3 320 45 823 1,055 930 700
All Scotland 262 29 78,618 72,795 50,492 51,198 54,051 55,586

In 2021, the North West and the West were the main areas where ova were laid down to hatch. The North West and the West were the main smolt producing areas. The greatest number of staff were employed in the North West region.

Figure 2: The regional distribution of active Atlantic salmon smolt sites in 2021
This is a map showing the distribution of active Atlantic salmon smolt sites in Scotland in 2021. The map is split into 6 areas: Shetland, Orkney, North West, East & South, West and Western Isles and has black dots showing where each site is on the map.

© Crown copyright and database rights 2020 OS (100024655)

International Trade

Scotland has a high health status with regard to the listed diseases. Imports of Atlantic salmon must originate from a source that is of equal or higher health status and consignments must be accompanied by a health certificate issued by the competent authority confirming that all requirements have been met.

Exports are subject to the health conditions placed by the importing country. Potential exporters should ascertain from the competent authority in the importing country any specific health testing requirements that may be a condition of import and obtain a copy of the required health certificate. The Fish Health Inspectorate will provide advice on whether the source site can fulfil the export requirements.

Imports and Exports

Table 22a: Source and number (000’s) of salmon ova, fry, parr and smolts imported during 2012-2021 derived from health certificates
Import Year Ova Fry, Parr and Smolts
Iceland Norway Republic of Ireland Total Norway Republic of Ireland Total
2012 0 23,849 10,134 33,983 0 0 0
2013 2,719 35,044 10,700 48,463 0 55 55
2014 3,813 49,831 5,218 58,862 1,748 1,602 3,350
2015 8,978 45,926 4,815 59,719 365 2,118 2,483
2016 5,324 38,602 5,444 49,370 0 1,956 1,956
2017 13,883 37,025 7,000 57,908 0 2,012 2,012
2018 10,116 48,430 7,250 65,796 0 1,700 1,700
2019 26,352 23,673 10,184 60,209 0 297 297
2020 41,756 220 15,296 57,272 0 1,130 1,130
2021 31,276 160 19,260 50,696 0 300 300

The numbers of ova imported decreased by 11% in 2021. The number of fry, parr and smolts imported also decreased, with 300,000 fish imported from the Republic of Ireland during 2021.

Table 22b: Destination and number (000’s) of salmon ova, fry, parr and smolts exported during 2012-2021 derived from health certificates
Export year Farmed origin ova Fry, Parr and Smolts
2012 0 55
2013 650 404
2014 0 259
2015 95 8
2016 358 173
2017 339 206
2018 23 71
2019 0 263
2020 0 389
2021 0 371

In 2021, no ova were exported. Fry, parr and smolt exports decreased by 18,000 fish on the 2020 figure.

Vaccines

Table 23: Number of sites using vaccines and number (millions) of fish vaccinated during 2012-2021
Year 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021
No. of sites 63 63 56 55 47 46 43 46 43 43
No. of fish (millions) vaccinated 48.1 47.5 44.7 48.0 42.6 58.4 51.0 52.4 59.2 54.9

Vaccines were used to provide protection against furunculosis, infectious pancreatic necrosis (IPN), ERM, vibriosis and salmonid alphavirus (SAV). The majority of fish were vaccinated against furunculosis, IPN and SAV, with smaller numbers of fish being vaccinated against ERM and vibriosis. A total of 54.9 million fish were vaccinated across 43 sites.

Escapes

In 2021, there were no reported escapes from sites rearing freshwater Atlantic salmon.

Contact

Email: lorna.munro@gov.scot

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