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07/19/2021

Welfare Complaint Filed Vs Mowi's RSPCA Assured "Responsibly Sourced" Scottish Salmon

 

 

 

 

Scottish Salmon Watch today (19 July 2021) filed a welfare complaint against Mowi's RSPCA Assured Scottish salmon.

 

 

 

 

Here's a one minute summary of video footage shot at four RSPCA Assured salmon farms (all operated by Mowi) on 16 & 17 July 2021:

 

 

 

 

Here's two short video clips shot inside RSPCA Assured Mowi salmon farms on 16 & 17 July 2021 (further video footage will be posted online here):

 

 

 

 

 

 

Here's Scottish Salmon Watch's welfare complaint (the names of four RSPCA Assured Mowi salmon farms are redacted) filed this morning:

 

From: Don Staniford <[email protected]>
Date: Mon, Jul 19, 2021 at 7:15 AM
Subject: Welfare complaint re. RSPCA Assured Mowi salmon farms [REDACTED]
To: <[email protected]>, SM-APHA-Enquiries APHA <[email protected]>, SCD Wildlife Crime <[email protected]>, APHA Corporate Correspondence <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>
Cc: Gougeon M (Mairi), MSP <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>
 
Please consider this a formal complaint for breaches of the Animal Health & Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 (Section 19: Unnecessary Suffering; and Section 24: Ensuring Welfare of Animals) by Mowi at four RSPCA Assured salmon farms on 16/17 July 2021; namely:

Redacted

 

Video footage and photos filmed by Scottish Salmon Watch in the evening of Friday (16 July 2021) and on Saturday (17 July 2021) is published online via:
 
 
A one-minute compilation of the video footage is online via: https://vimeo.com/576606474
 
Shorter video clips are available via:
 
Raw unedited video footage from Mowi's REDACTED salmon farm on Saturday evening (17 July 2021) to ground-truth the filming is available via:
 
And raw footage of salmon lying dead and dying on the surface of Mowi's REDACTED salmon farm on Saturday morning (17 July 2021) is available via:
https://vimeo.com/576448909/bd7a062d1e (it seems that morts lie either dead or dying on the surface early in the morning before Mowi staff come to pick them all out in a small dinghy which they have tied to their farms - hence a visit prior to Mowi staff cleaning up the morts would be advisable).
 
Scottish Salmon Watch followed Scottish Government and SSPO approved biosecurity measures and safety protocols when filming - we disinfected (with Virkon) our kayak which was launched safely and at a distance outside Mowi's lease area.  Here's ground-truthing video from Saturday evening (17 July 2021) at Mowi's REDACTED salmon farm ca. 6pm when no staff were present on site:
 
Scottish Salmon Watch recommends filming inside Mowi's cages with better equipment - my Go Pro camera has seen better days and the telescopic window-cleaning pole (£9.99 from a hardware store) is not as stable as you would like.  Here's ground-truthing video footage from Mowi's REDACTED salmon farm on Saturday morning (17 July 2021): https://vimeo.com/576464579/890b1dff37
 
Suffice to say that Scottish Salmon Watch found clear evidence of welfare abuse at all four RSPCA Assured salmon farms - with dead salmon and cleaner fish lying belly up in the cages, lice-infestation of both farmed salmon and cleaner fish and evidence of physical damage to farmed salmon clearly visible when filming at the cages (including eye damage, head damage, snout damage and fin damage). 
 
 
 
Poll Na Gille 17 July 2021 photo #5 lice infested salmon with small fish swimming.jpg
Poll Na Gille 17 July 2021 photo #7.jpg
 
 
Bay of Dead Heads 16 July 2021 photo #2.jpg
 
Bay of Dead Heads 16 July 2021 photo #1.jpg
 

SW Shuna 16 July 2021 Photo #1.jpg
 
Port Na Cro 17 July 2021 photo #13 white head.jpg

 
 
Please also note that our filming was carried out in poor visibility (it was misty), in snatched sessions (when we filmed at REDACTED at 6.30pm on Friday we had to leave when we noticed a salmon farm worker on site) and we only filmed on a 2 metre telescopic pole (filming in deeper water would be advisable).  Hence Scottish Salmon Watch only just scratched the surface of the welfare abuse which appears endemic in these RSPCA Assured salmon farms. 
 
I have already Tweeted various photos and videos naming Mowi but not the four salmon farm locations:
 
 
 
Scottish Salmon Watch would strongly encourage site inspections early this week before Mowi bury the evidence of welfare abuse. 
 
If you have any questions please do not hesitate to contact me (I am away on a family holiday from early tomorrow until late Friday but the seriousness of the welfare abuse warranted filing complaints immediately and working through the weekend to get the photos and videos out quickly). 
 
Thanks,
 
Don Staniford
 
Director, Scottish Salmon Watch

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scottish Salmon Watch reported in May 2021:

 

The RSPCA's recently published farmed salmon standards are eye-opening in terms of how the salmon farming industry gets away with the mass murder (or theriocide) of millions of RSPCA Assured 'welfare-friendly' and "responsibly sourced" Scottish salmon.  RSPCA Assured Scottish salmon accounts for ca. 60-70% of salmon farming production in Scotland - representing over £500,000 in annual income to the RSPCA from salmon farming companies - and all salmon farming companies except Organic Sea Harvest are signed up to the scheme. 

 

RSPCA Feb 2021 front cover

 

 

 

 

 

The RSPCA's farmed salmon standards (February 2021) detail a scoring system for assessing welfare problems in farmed salmon with, for example, fish missing one eye deemed "mild" damage and fish missing two eyes deemed "severe damage".

RSPCA standards Feb 2021 #2 physical injury monitoring

RSPCA standards Feb 2021 #3 physical injury monitoring

RSPCA standards Feb 2021 #4 physical injury monitoring

RSPCA standards Feb 2021 #5 physical injury monitoring

RSPCA standards Feb 2021 #6 physical injury monitoring

RSPCA standards Feb 2021 #7 physical injury monitoring

RSPCA standards Feb 2021 #8 physical injury monitoring

 

 

 

 

How would these poor farmed salmon score on the RSPCA's welfare assessment?

 

Eye collage #1

Eye collage #2

Eye collage #3

Eye collage #4

 

 

What score would the RSPCA inspectors give to these farmed salmon filmed by Compassion in World Farming at 22 salmon farms between September and December 2020?

 

CIWF Dead Fish report March 2021 #2 photo

CIWF Dead Fish report March 2021 #3 photo

CIWF Scottish Salmon Investigation March 2021 #15 Grieg lice infested

CIWF Scottish Salmon Investigation March 2021 #26 SSF dead fish blind swimming

 

 

 

 

 

 

What score would the RSPCA assign to these farmed salmon filmed by Corin Smith of Inside Scottish Salmon Feedlots (published in May 2021)?

 

 

 

 

Here's photos of diseased, deformed and abused Scottish salmon which slipped through the RSPCA's welfare assessment net.

 

Photo Dossier of FHI Case Information Feb 2020 #1 Photo Dossier of FHI Case Information Feb 2020 #2

 

 

 

 

 

The photo dossier includes these RSPCA Assured salmon farmed by Mowi:

 

Photo Dossier of FHI Case Information Feb 2020 #3 Mowi Tabhaigh

Photo Dossier of FHI Case Information Feb 2020 #4 Mowi Port na Cro

Photo Dossier of FHI Case Information Feb 2020 #6 Mowi Poll na Gille

Photo Dossier of FHI Case Information Feb 2020 #7 Mowi Rum

Photo Dossier of FHI Case Information Feb 2020 #11 Mowi Kingairloch

Photo Dossier of FHI Case Information Feb 2020 #20 Mowi Groatay

Photo Dossier of FHI Case Information Feb 2020 #21 Mowi Grey Horse Channel

Photo Dossier of FHI Case Information Feb 2020 #39 Mowi Raineach

Photo Dossier of FHI Case Information Feb 2020 #44 Mowi Ardmaddy

Photo Dossier of FHI Case Information Feb 2020 #45 Mowi Ardmaddy

 

 

 

More recent photographic evidence at RSPCA Assured Mowi was published later in 2020:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Scottish Salmon Watch filmed at RSPCA Assured Mowi in Loch Greshornish in July 2020: 

 

 

 

 

And at RSPCA Assured Mowi in Loch Torridon in September 2020: 

 

 

 

 

Mowi's RSPCA Assured (and ASC-certified) salmon farm at Gorsten in Loch Linnhe features in Netflix's global hit 'Seaspiracy'. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In May 2021, Scottish Salmon Watch filed a welfare complaint against RSPCA Assured Scottish Sea Farms in Loch Spelve leading to the temporary suspension of RSPCA certification. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Last year, Scottish Salmon Watch wrote to the RSPCA asking them to stop certifying farmed salmon as 'welfare-friendly'.

 

 

Letter to RSPCA re welfare abuse on RSPCA Assured salmon farms 5 February 2020 #1

 

 

The Sunday Times revealed in February 2020 that the RSPCA rake in over £500,000 from certifying farmed salmon.

 

Sunday Times 9 Feb 2020 RSPCA newspaper version #1

Sunday Times 9 Feb 2020 RSPCA newspaper version #2

 

 

 

 

 

The Sunday Times reported earlier in February 2020:

 

Sunday Times Scientist hits out RSPCA 2 Feb 2020 Newspaper version #1

Sunday Times Scientist hits out RSPCA 2 Feb 2020 Newspaper version #2

 

 

In April 2021, Scottish Salmon Watch wrote to the Secretary of State regarding the lack of quality and quantity of welfare "inspections" of salmon farms. 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Corin Smith posted on Facebook's Inside Scottish Salmon Feedlots (13 May 2021):

 

RSPCA Corin critique 13 May 2021 #1

RSPCA Corin critique 13 May 2021 #2

RSPCA Corin critique 13 May 2021 #3

 

 

 

In September 2020, Scottish Salmon Watch reported on welfare abuse at Kames in Loch Tralaig.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Ferret reported (24 September 2020):

 

Ferret 24 Sept 2020 #1

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Ferret & Sunday National reported in November 2019:

 

Sunday National 10 Nov 2019 newspaper version in full

 

 

Scottish Salmon Watch revealed in April 2020 that Mowi were censured by the Animal & Plant Health Agency following secret filming at Bay of the Dead Heads salmon farm in July 2019.

 

APHA Failure to Comply letter to Mowi 16 Sept 2019 BDNC #1

APHA Failure to Comply letter to Mowi 16 Sept 2019 BDNC #2

 

 

PR Censored Welfare Abuse on Salmon Farms 23 April 2020 #3

 

 

 

 

 

Shocking video footage of mortalities at Mowi's Bay of the Dead Heads salmon farm was posted by diver David Ainsley in September 2020. 

 

David Ainsley Vimeo Sept 2019 #7 went to investigate Ferguson

 

David Ainsley Vimeo Sept 2019 #1 mort grab

 

 

 

The Ferret reported in March 2021:

 

Ferret 23 March 2021 #1

Ferret 23 March 2021 #2

 

 

 

 

 

Read more via:

 

 

 

 

 

 

Posted at 10:28 AM |

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