Green Around the Gills

The Ferret: "Deadly virus outbreak prompted fears over import of fish farm eggs to Scotland"

Game Ova for Scottish Salmon - Deadly disease delays egg imports from AquaGen in Norway

'Secret' Scottish Salmon - Norwegian-owned Scottish Sea Farms refuse to disclose information for ova imports as it would "cause substantial harm to their commercial interests"

Complete Mockery of the Brand 'Scottish Salmon': Norway bans import of Scottish salmon eggs citing disease risks & genetic impacts under the Nature Diversity Act

Imported eggs ruling 'makes a mockery of Scottish salmon'

Tartan imposters’ charge as fish egg imports hit 90%

'Norwegian' genes found in wild salmon populations in Wester Ross

Scottish Scamon Eggsposé: FOI data @scotgov reveals 787 million ova imported from #Norway (62%), #Ireland (19%) & #Iceland (18%) for use on salmon farms in #Scotland since 2003!
'Scottish' salmon is a fake brand! @SalmonScotland
@ScotlandSalmon @SalmonTroutCons @MairiMcAllan pic.twitter.com/DLZhfAjYmq
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 29, 2021

Posted at 09:27 AM | Permalink

Scottish Scamon Eggsposé: The Foreign Companies Importing Over 320 Million Salmon Eggs (Ova) Into 'Scottish' Fish Farms Since 2016!

Data obtained via various Freedom of Information disclosures by the Scottish Government detail over 323.4 million ova imported from Norway, Iceland and the Republic of Ireland for use on 'Scottish' salmon farms since 1 January 2016. That's in addition to 462.5 million ova imported from Iceland, the Republic of Ireland, Iceland, Australia and USA between 2003 and 2015 (according to a FOI disclosure by the Scottish Government in November 2018). So that's 786.9 million ova imported into 'Scottish' salmon farming in the last two decades predominantly from Norway (62%), the Republic of Ireland (19%) and Iceland (18%)!

Scottish Scamon Eggsposé: FOI data @scotgov reveals 787 million ova imported from #Norway (62%), #Ireland (19%) & #Iceland (18%) for use on salmon farms in #Scotland since 2003!
'Scottish' salmon is a fake brand! @SalmonScotland
@ScotlandSalmon @SalmonTroutCons @MairiMcAllan pic.twitter.com/DLZhfAjYmq
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 29, 2021

Since 1 January 2016, Norway is the source country for 146.6 million ova imported via 128 shipments (45%); Iceland is the source country for 111.6 million ova imported via 101 shipments (35%); and the Republic of Ireland is the source country for 65.2 million ova via 51 shipments (20%). However, from 2003 to 2015 the picture is different with Norway accounting for 342 million ova imports (74%) with the Republic of Ireland at 84.4 million (18%), Iceland at 29.9 million (6.5%), Australia at 4.8 million (1%) and 1.3 million from USA (less than 1%). Since 1 June 2019 (after Norwegian ova were banned due to Infectious Salmon Anaemia risks), Iceland has accounted for 68% of ova imports into Scotland with the Republic of Ireland accounting for 32% and Norway accounting for less than 1%.

Since June 2019 (after Norwegian ova were banned due to Infectious Salmon Anaemia), #Iceland has accounted for 68% of ova imports into #Scotland with #Norway accounting for less than 1%. Now that #ISA is in Iceland will ova imports be banned? @scotgov @MairiGougeon @MairiMcAllan pic.twitter.com/ppEROAmYDN
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 29, 2021

Download collated data set as an Excel spreadsheet (from 1 January 2016 to end of February 2021) online here

Since a ban on ova imports from Norway due to Infectious Salmon Anaemia in May 2019 the recent situation has changed dramatically with only three reported shipments from Norway (all from AquaGen) totalling 380,000 ova:

In that same period (June 2019 to April 2021), there have been 66 shipments from Iceland totalling 78.5 million ova and 23 shipments from the Republic of Ireland totalling 37 million ova. So since 1 June 2019, Iceland has accounted for 68% of ova imports into Scotland with the Republic of Ireland accounting for 32% and Norway accounting for less than 1%.

Replacing imports of salmon eggs from Norway (where Infectious Salmon Anaemia is ravaging farms) with imports from Iceland (fingered in the spread of Piscine reovirus to USA) is like leaping out of the frying pan into the fire! https://t.co/ybGKdLWR9B @WeAreBenchmark @scotgov pic.twitter.com/wsmnKodIAp
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) July 7, 2021

Now that Infectious Salmon Anaemia has been reported at Laxar in Iceland (a Norwegian-owned company which is sources ova from Stofnfiskur - rebranded Benchmark Genetics Iceland in January 2021) will Scotland now ban Icelandic ova imports and rely only on Irish ova imports?

Here's the 25 largest reported imports dominated by Marine Harvest/Mowi (Marine Harvest changed their name to Mowi in January 2019 due to "negative consumer perception" in the name Marine Harvest) as either the operator of the site of destination at various locations in Scotland or source company in Norway, Iceland and the Republic of Ireland:

Download the Excel spreadsheet in full detailing over 313 million ova imports via 272 shipments since 1 January 2016 online here - a further 10 million ova via seven shipments from Ireland and Iceland were imported between March and April 2021 (as detailed by a FOI disclosure by the Scottish Government in August 2021) although the name of source company was not provided:

Here's the most recent ova import shipments where data on the source company is provided:

Here's the most recent ova import shipments from the Republic of Ireland (where data on the source company is provided):

Here's the most recent ova import shipments from Norway (where data on the source company is provided) - hit by a ban on ova imports due to Infectious Salmon Anaemia in May 2019:

Here's the most recent ova import shipments from Iceland (where data on the source company is provided):

Norwegian-owned Laxar - hit by Infectious Salmon Anaemia in #Iceland - sources salmon eggs (ova) from Stofnfiskur (Benchmark) @WeAreBenchmark
Since 2016, 'Scottish' salmon farms have imported 110.6 million ova from Stofnfiskur (Benchmark). Will @scotgov now close the border? pic.twitter.com/xOJO5tuUv2
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 29, 2021

The salmon farming site importing the most ova since 1 January 2016 is Mowi's Lochailort Hatchery near Fort William which was opened by then First Minister of Scotland Alex Salmond in 2013 with a staggering 62.1 million via 31 shipments from AquaGen in Norway, Stofnfiskur in Iceland and Mowi/Marine Harvest in Ireland and Norway:

Mowi's Inchmore hatchery near Inverness - which was only opened in June 2018 by Fergus Ewing and has already suffered huge mortality losses including 117,908 dead fish in June 2021 due to lack of oxygen and an air system failure killing 500,000 fish in October 2018 - imported 31.4 million ova via 19 shipments from Marine Harvest Norway, Mowi Ireland, Mowi Norway and Stofnfiskur in Iceland:

The Girlsta Hatchery operated by Norwegian-owned Grieg Seafood in Shetland - which lost 200,000 fish in June 2020 due to a fire - imported 28.6 million ova from Benchmark Genetics Iceland and Stofnfiskur in Iceland (the latter was rebranded into the former in January 2021), Grieg Seafood Rogaland in Norway, Salmobreed in Norway (also owned by Benchmark since 2014), AquaGen in Norway and Erfjord Stamfisk (owned by Grieg Seafood) via 17 shipments:

Ormsary Hatchery (operated by Dutch-owned Hendrix Genetics who bought Landcatch in 2011 and who earlier this month sold a 50% stake to US investment company Paine Schwarz) - a site with a history of welfare abuse, toxic chemical use and threatening behaviour - imported 26.7 million ova via 28 shipments from AquaGen in Norway, Benchmark Genetics Iceland (known before January 2021 as Stofnfiskur), Mowi/Marine Harvest Ireland, Grieg Seafood Rogaland in Norway, Salmobreed in Norway (acquired by Benchmark in 2014) and AS Bolaks in Norway (which sources ova from broodstock at Salmobreed/Benchmark) for use by Organic Sea Harvest, Loch Duart, The Scottish Salmon Company, Scottish Sea Farms and Saumon de France:

Inverpolly hatchery near Ullapool - which has a history of pollution and fungus problems - imported 26.4 million ova via 15 shipments from Mowi Ireland, Mowi Norway and Marine Harvest Norway (the site is registered to Finfish but according to Companies House has been controlled by Mowi since March 2020):

Barcaldine Hatchery near Oban - operated by Norwegian-owned Scottish Sea Farms and the subject of an Infectious Salmon Anaemia scare in 2018 before it was opened in 2019 following a visit by Scottish Minister Kate Forbes - imported 23.4 million ova from AquaGen in Norway, Mowi Ireland and Stofnfiskur in Iceland via 18 shipments:

The Cairndow Hatchery on the Ardkinglas Estate in Argyle on Loch Fyne has imported 21.5 million ova predominantly for Cooke Aquaculture via 15 shipments from Stofnfiskur in Iceland, AquaGen in Norway, Mowi Ireland and Marine Harvest Norway:

Mowi/Marine Harvest is the biggest source company importing ova - with 101 shipments from Ireland and Norway totalling 145 million ova since 1 January 2016. Here's the most recent imports from Mowi Ireland:

And the most recent ova imports from Mowi Norway and Marine Harvest Norway:

Stofnfiskur in Iceland has been the source company importing 103.8 million ova in 93 shipments since 1 January 2016 with recent imports leaping due to Norway's ova import ban - here's the most recent:

AquaGen in Norway has been the source company importing 33.5 million ova in 47 shipments since 1 January 2016 but imports have been hit hard by the ban due to Infectious Salmon Anaemia in May 2019 - here's the most recent shipments:

In terms of companies receiving imported ova, Mowi/Marine Harvest is named as the operator or 'consignee on certificate' for 56 shipments totalling 105.2 million (from Mowi/Marine Harvest in Norway and the Republic of Ireland, Stofnfiskur in Iceland and AquaGen in Norway). Here's the largest ova shipments to Mowi/Marine Harvest since 1 January 2016:

The Scottish Salmon Company is named as the operator or 'consignee on certificate' for 55 shipments totalling 51.9 million. Here's some of The Scottish Salmon Company's imports of ova sourced predominantly from AquaGen in Norway, Stofnfiskur in Iceland:

Scottish Sea Farms is named as the operator or 'consignee on certificate' for 39 shipments totalling 47.6 million. Here's some of Scottish Sea Farms' imports of ova sourced from Mowi/Marine Harvest Ireland, AquaGen in Norway and Stofnfiskur in Iceland:

Grieg Seafood is named as the operator or 'consignee on certificate' for 18 shipments of ova (all to the Girlsta Hatchery in Shetland) totalling 28.6 million. Here's all the ova shipments mostly from Stofnfiskur in Iceland (rebranded Benchmark Genetics Iceland in January 2021) and AquaGen in Norway:

Cooke Aquaculture is named as the operator or 'consignee on certificate' for 33 shipments of ova totalling 22.3 million. Here's some of the ova shipments imported to Cooke Aquaculture from Norway, Iceland and the Republic of Ireland:

'Organic' Sea Harvest has imported via Landcatch's Ormsary Hatchery 4.2 million ova in six shipments from Iceland and the Republic of Ireland including from Mowi, Stofnfiskur and Benchmark Genetics Iceland (formerly called Stofnfiskur):

A FOI disclosure by the Scottish Government in July 2018 detailing ova imports in 2017 was originally redacted as it was deemed 'commercially damaging':

However, following a FOI victory with a ruling by the Scottish Information Commissioner, ova import data for Scottish Sea Farms was finally disclosed in full in December 2019:

'Scottish' Salmon Exposed As Made in Ireland & Iceland https://t.co/YjE3j56SBk Here's the information which @scotgov claimed "would cause substantial harm to commercial interests" @scotseafarms @HGSalmonUK @FergusEwingMSP Thanks to Scottish Information Commissioner @FOIScotland pic.twitter.com/ecZDPSD4Bk
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) December 18, 2019

Data published by the Scottish Government in September 2021 via the 'Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2020' detailed imports of ova from Iceland flooding 'Scottish' salmon farms following the ban on ova imports from Norway due to ISA risks in 2019:

Game Ova for Iceland?
Last year, 'Scottish' salmon farming imported 42 million salmon eggs (ova) from Iceland - how many were infected with Infectious Salmon Anaemia? @scotgov @MairiGougeon @marinescotland https://t.co/SupjI0ROMP @EFTAsecretariat @Iceland_Review #Iceland #ISA pic.twitter.com/VtJk2POf8m
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 27, 2021

Data disclosed by the Scottish Government via FOI in November 2018 detailed ova imports from 2003 to 2015 - with an eye-popping 462.5 million ova imported from Iceland, the Republic of Ireland, Iceland, Australia and USA. Norway accounted for 342 million ova imports (74%) with the Republic of Ireland at 84.4 million (18%), Iceland at 29.9 million (6.5%), Australia at 4.8 million (1%) and 1.3 million from USA (less than 1%):

A paper published in the journal Aquaculture in May 2016 detailed ova imports from Norway starting in the early 1980s and picking up in the early 2000s as 'Scottish' salmon was flooded by foreign shipments:

In July 2019, the Mail On Sunday reported:

Record numbers of foreign salmon eggs are being imported by Scottish fish farms - @TheGAAIA in today’s Scottish Mail on Sunday: pic.twitter.com/wdACZSgpgh
— Georgia Edkins (@Georgia_Edkins) July 7, 2019

ISA in Iceland - will Scotland ban ova imports to prevent disease risks as with Norway?

Wild Scottish salmon stocks have DNA from escaped farm fish, study shows

A national assessment of the influence of farmed salmon escapes on the genetic integrity of wild Scottish Atlantic salmon populations

New Scottish Government study confirms the severe damage being done to wild salmon populations by salmon farming

Breaking News: ISA reported at RSPCA Assured Scottish Sea Farms on the Isle of Mull

Letter to Scottish Ministers re. ISA in Scottish Salmon

Media Backgrounder: Scottish Salmon’s Recurring ISA Nightmare

Media Backgrounder: Norway’s Infectious Salmon Aquacalypse – Going Global Since 1984!

Eggsclusive: FOI Reveals 'Scottish' Salmon Imported As Ova from Iceland & Ireland - Norway eggs-pelled due to disease risks!

Massive Attack on "Rotten Edifice" of 'Scottish' Salmon

Norwegian Salmon Ova Slip Back Into Scotland (as Infectious Salmon Anaemia plagues salmon farms in Norway)

Norway's Infectious Salmon "Horror Show" Secretly Playing Now In Scotland?

EFTA disclose documents on disease-ridden Norwegian salmon farming but refuse more citing commercial confidentiality

'Scottish' salmon resumes imports of "ISA-free" eggs from Norway?

Undercurrent News: "Iceland replaces Norway as main source of Scottish salmon eggs following import ban"

Letter to Scottish Ministers: "Bio-security Protocols & Safety Precautions re. Ova Imports"

The Ferret: "Imports of Norwegian salmon eggs banned over deadly virus"

Norwegian Salmon Egg Exports Banned Due to Disease Risks

Game Ova for Scottish Salmon - Deadly disease delays egg imports from AquaGen in Norway

Deadly virus outbreak prompted fears over import of fish farm eggs to Scotland

Mail On Sunday: "90% of Scottish salmon 'ISN'T' from Scotland' - 66m eggs shipped in from abroad"

Salmon Eggsclusive: Scotland's 'King of Fish' is Now Viking Not Scottish!

The Ferret: "Deadly virus outbreak prompted fears over import of fish farm eggs to Scotland"

Game Ova for Scottish Salmon - Deadly disease delays egg imports from AquaGen in Norway

'Secret' Scottish Salmon - Norwegian-owned Scottish Sea Farms refuse to disclose information for ova imports as it would "cause substantial harm to their commercial interests"

Complete Mockery of the Brand 'Scottish Salmon': Norway bans import of Scottish salmon eggs citing disease risks & genetic impacts under the Nature Diversity Act

Imported eggs ruling 'makes a mockery of Scottish salmon'

Tartan imposters’ charge as fish egg imports hit 90%

'Norwegian' genes found in wild salmon populations in Wester Ross

#COVID19 has taught us that closing borders is vital in stemming the spread of infectious diseases, viruses & pathogens https://t.co/MAShiQlkpw Salmon farms using imported eggs should be quarantined until they can prove they're free of deadly viruses! @GreenerScotland #ISA #PRV pic.twitter.com/2pazJ07x9U
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 26, 2020

Posted at 10:34 AM | Permalink

The Spy Who Loved 'Scottish' Salmon - from Russia, Ukraine, Switzerland, Norway & the Faroes with Love for Salmoney!

From "global hero" in 2016 @IoD_Scotland to caught spying for @salmon_scottish by @FerretScot
Meet Craig Anderson: The Spy Who Loved 'Scottish' Salmon - from Russia with Love for Salmoney!! https://t.co/hARbao5svk @ScotlandSalmon @Folketrygdfond @Try_Lochlander @tavishscott pic.twitter.com/aam3Tn6jnF
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 28, 2021

When The Ferret and The Herald reported yesterday on spying by a former Chief Executive of The Scottish Salmon Company on Corin Smith and another unnamed critic of salmon farming, it seems fishy why didn't they name the person who requested an ‘intelligence report’.

A leading Scottish salmon producer hired a private investigator to snoop on a key critic of the fish farming industry, internal industry documents reveal. https://t.co/2cG6KkFhS1
— The Ferret (@FerretScot) November 27, 2021

The Ferret article does attach this document (online via Original Document) referring to "the request of a former Chief Executive of The Scottish Salmon Company":

An ‘intelligence report’ @salmon_scottish recommends surveillance of Smith and the other individual - whose name is redacted - for 48 hours before and after fish farming events https://t.co/Ei3CjzPPHQ @FerretScot pic.twitter.com/LeoHy06VBv
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 28, 2021

And this email (online via Original Document) which appears to be from the private investigator hired by the former Chief Executive of The Scottish Salmon Company dated 24 September 2018:

The Chief Executive of The Scottish Salmon Company in 2018 - and until he left in December 2019 - was Craig Anderson. "‘It’s unprofessional, it’s possibly illegal and we’ll look into it further," said Craig Anderson in August 2018 after Corin Smith had filmed inside The Scottish Salmon Company's disease-ridden salmon farm at Vacasay in Loch Roag (although he did not say that "we'll look into it further" actually meant hiring a private investigator!):

"It’s unprofessional, it’s possibly illegal & we’ll look into it further" said Craig Anderson (boss @salmon_scottish) in 2018 after Corin Smith filmed inside a disease-ridden salmon farm https://t.co/NGOxIOeDXV
Then he hired a private investigator to look into it further!! pic.twitter.com/bMSWC6rht2
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 28, 2021

Fish Farming Expert reported (4 September 2018):

The scale of the tragedy in Loch Roag and The Scottish Salmon Company's "own goal" led to a backlash by Salmon Business:

Craig Anderson's services for apparently spying on behalf of Scottish salmon have not gone unrewarded. In fact, to some he has been described as a "global hero":

Hope he’s enjoying his £1million and the big prize for being wonderful that the IOD gave him. It’s funny that these people accuse the activists of being in league with big money. https://t.co/JM02JZnE1P pic.twitter.com/o5mgHSlgtR
— Eòghann MacUalraig (@ewangkennedy) November 28, 2021

In March 2018, The Scottish Salmon Company reported in a press release:

Fish Farming Expert reported in December 2019:

The Scotsman reported in May 2017 that Anderson worked for 20 years in Russia (a country with a history of spying):

Whilst working in Russia, Craig Anderson may have encountered Ukrainian property tycoon and investment banker Yuri Lopatinsky (the controlling shareholder in The Scottish Salmon Company before selling out to Bakkafrost in 2019). Salmon Business reported in September 2019:

The Scotsman reported on "the publicity-shy businessman" Yuriy Lopatinskyy in 2010 relating to his property interests in Edinburgh including the buildings in Charlotte Square either side of the First Minister of Scotland (perfect for any bugging).

It's not known if the former owner of The Scottish Salmon Company was home earlier this month during COP26 when protestors shone 'Salmon Farming Kills Wild Salmon' on the front of Bute House in Charlotte Square:

Undercurrent News reported in November 2013 that Craig Anderson became boss of The Scottish Salmon Company on 1 January 2014:

Craig Anderson was still the boss of The Scottish Salmon Company when in June 2019 lawyers representing The Scottish Salmon Company's controlling shareholder Yuri Lopatynsky threatened legal action for publishing information via 'Scottish Scamon'. Here's the legal threat which was served at my house (I wonder if a private investigator tracked down my home address?):

Despite the legal threat, the offending report on The Scottish Salmon Company is still online here along with other reports on the six companies which control 99% of 'Scottish' salmon farming:

I wrote about this - and other things about The 'Scottish' Salmon Company - in a blog published in November 2020:

Anyone for 'Scottish' salmon? Imported as eggs from Norway & Iceland and bankrolled by £££$$€€s in #Norway, #Faroes, #USA, #Denmark & #Belgium
'Exclusively from Scotland' claims @salmon_scottish "Provenance guaranteed" @waitrose @wjhm93 @Folketrygdfond https://t.co/NusyErqUWk pic.twitter.com/H2CZUVJEjD
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 13, 2020

Craig Anderson is an honarary black belt in judo so I best be on guard.

Just taken the rubbish out and I think I saw a private investigator spying on me! https://t.co/Ei3CjzPPHQ pic.twitter.com/zFZD0h3gNU
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 27, 2021

Like Corin Smith, I've filmed inside many salmon farms operated by The Scottish Salmon Company. Here's some shocking video footage from inside The Scottish Salmon Company's salmon farm in Loch Shieldaig in June 2019 - along with other video footage including The Scottish Salmon Company's West Strome salmon farm in September 2021, The Scottish Salmon Company's Meall Mhor salmon farm in June 2021 and The Scottish Salmon Company's Vacasay salmon farm in August 2018:

Earlier this month (21 November 2021), French TV also featured The Scottish Salmon Company's disease-ridden operations in Loch Carron:

Netflix's 'Seaspiracy' also features The Scottish Salmon Company and Corin Smith:

And the Kate Winslet-narrated film 'Eating Our Way to Extinction' features The Scottish Salmon Company's disease-ridden operations:

Read more via:

"This Big Brother level of corporate snooping is frankly disturbing" @williemackenzie @GreenpeaceUK "Not being able to win the argument by fair means, a part of the fish farming industry seems to be resorting to these shady tactics" https://t.co/Ei3CjzPPHQ @FerretScot
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 27, 2021

Off to Scotland soon for more secret filming & in view of all the snooping I've decided to invest in high tech countermeasures. Shhh - please don't tell any private investigators hired by 'Scottish' salmon! pic.twitter.com/TOYiJo2daN
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 29, 2021

The Scotsman reported in 2017: "It's about 4 years since Craig Anderson started captaining the Scottish Salmon Company....he spent more than 20 years in Russia, where he worked in telecoms" @TheScotsman https://t.co/IcvjeDiTk6
Maybe he learned about GPS tracking from the KGB?
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) December 4, 2021

Posted at 02:51 PM | Permalink

Corin Smith - interview with the man who is being spied upon by 'Scottish' salmon!

If 'Scottish' salmon farming want to get the inside track on Corin Smith of Inside Scottish Salmon Feedlots they should read Trout & Salmon magazine (rather than putting a GPS tracking device under his car)! @TroutSalmonMag https://t.co/GVpFjEi09w @salmon_scottish @ScotlandSalmon pic.twitter.com/hwo0Hrya6i
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 28, 2021

Trout & Salmon featured an interview with Corin Smith of Inside Scottish Salmon Feedlots in August 2020:

Here's the text of the Trout & Salmon article published in August 2020:

WINNING OVER THE PUBLIC

Jim Coates talks to Corin Smith, a man dedicated to halting the devastating environmental impacts of the salmon farming industry

Trout & Salmon (UK)
1 Aug 2020

CORIN SMITH GREW UP ON A HILL sheep farm in Perthshire and from an early age he loved the outdoors and nature. Working life proper began in London where Corin joined a start-up called Betfair. Somewhat unwittingly he found himself in the midst of the dotcom boom. By 24 he’d earned himself a seat at the top table of a rapidly growing international business. An affinity for analytics and strategy proved to be a perfect match for the boom in online betting. Corin attended London Business School and after leaving Betfair consulted for a number of major organisations.

Today, Corin is dedicated to driving change in the damaging salmon farming industry. Above all, he’s a man with strong personal views about what needs to be done and a hunger for tangible results. Corin’s efforts have helped to attract the attention of the BBC Panorama programme and a host of national newspapers, dragging salmon farming into the public spotlight.

We first met on the River Tay and I remember being struck by the depth and intensity of his views about the collective effort to protect and enhance wild salmon and sea-trout stocks.

He’s anything but bland.

“Well intentioned but naïve just isn’t working, we have to professionalise and we have to go beyond the limits of our own audience”

JIM You’ve previously argued that we need to rethink what salmon conservation can and should encompass.

CORIN Conservation and conserving salmon fishing are different things. Truly wild salmon are the product of large-scale healthy ecosystems. Conservation of wild salmon has to mean big picture conservation. In today’s world, it’s also a political issue, not only a matter of science. Conserving salmon fishing could, in theory, be achieved through intensive artificial stocking and the elimination of other species that diminish those stocks. But then, how could we claim to be conservationists?

JIM You’re saying that we need to be more tuned into political positioning and public sentiment?

CORIN I think so. For decades, the management of wild salmon numbers in Scotland has been led by scientists. That’s been a failure of strategy, leading to the terminal decline of wild salmon stocks.

Scientists failed to recognise that wild salmon relied on the recreational salmon fishing industry delivering an argument for their abundance. That argument needs to include broad socio-economic benefits. Instead, what we’ve got are papers documenting their downfall.

JIM You’re very focused on salmon farms. To what extent do you think we are capable of “playing the game” and getting the wider public to demand change?

CORIN The case against salmon farms should be commercial and legal, with some supporting science. An organisation that wants to make progress will need to reflect that. It’s extraordinarily naive to think that presenting unfiltered science on its own to politicians and the public will yield results. Narratives need to be carefully managed.

JIM You think we should focus on salmon farms first, don’t you? But some might argue that’s a west coast issue, and not their fight?

CORIN For now, open-cage salmon farming in Scotland is the only game in town as far as the conservation of wild salmon in Scotland is concerned. Even for those rivers that may be affected by other issues.

“If we can’t deliver a meaningful win on salmon farming, you can forget about anything else”

JIM

It’s far from the only issue, though.

CORIN It’s the pivotal one. There’s an overwhelming body of evidence pointing to the damage being caused by salmon farms — two parliamentary inquiries have concluded the same. A number of prime-time television exposés and endless negative press are moving broader public opposition to open-cage salmon farming. No other campaign against an impact on wild salmon has anything like that level of support. If we can’t deliver a meaningful win on salmon farming, you can forget about anything else.

JIM

So we need to pick a big but winnable fight?

CORIN When we campaign successfully on something like salmon farming, demonstrate the ability to construct effective strategy, build a mandate, navigate political processes and ruthlessly deliver on policy, then we earn the respect, and fear, of politicians and industries that we will need to challenge in the future.

JIM You make an interesting point about fear and credibility. Is being more politically astute a big part of the change that you want to see?

people or effort, it’s about outcomes. Demonstrably, it’s the case that fishery management is failing. Salmon numbers have declined hugely and many of the organisations are nearly out of money.

JIM Within what you’ve said, some may agree that anyone leading an organisation should be continually identifying challenges and adapting their organisation to meet them effectively.

CORIN Yes, effectively — not just managing decline. I keep coming back to the necessity for wild salmon conservation to find its voice in a much broader public appetite for conservation and wider benefit. Some have done good work in this area, many haven’t.

JIM In terms of fitting into a broader public interest conservation scene, piscivorous birds are a thorny subject. Clearly, the birds are eating fish — I watch them on my local river most days. It’s frustrating when I extrapolate what I’m looking at.

CORIN People are desperate, angry — I get that. But great care needs to be taken about the way we approach this. Every time I listen to someone in salmon-fishing talking about shooting birds or seals and complaining about dolphins, I hear the industry hammering nails into its own coffin.

JIM It would be easier to think about the war and not the battle. If we had some wins, some sense of progress. I think in part that’s where the anger comes from.

CORIN The spirits of Stephen Hawking and Albert Einstein could produce a report that says predators are responsible for wild salmon decline, but shooting them isn’t going to fly with the public. It’s not a core message of a winning conservation strategy.

JIM There are a lot of sensible people among us who just want to see some balance, the ability to exercise modest pest control.

CORIN It’s going to take care and expertise. Where there are invasive species — which could be defined as those arriving from marine habitats into rivers — that may be predating excessively on a native species such as juvenile wild salmon, then there’s a conversation to be had. But it would be better broadened out — for example, by explaining that the “invasive” is taking prey from otters, kingfishers and ospreys, too. It’s all about positioning. Public opinion may live with that version.

JIM Yes, a neat job was done in positioning grey squirrels versus red squirrels. Recently, you’ve been involved with the American brand Patagonia, working on its Artifishal campaign. What did you learn from the way the branding, PR and marketing professionals approached the challenge?

“The conservation of wild salmon in today’s world should be commercially led”

CORIN They’re professional, well-funded, organised and well led.

JIM We have various organisations at loggerheads with each other. Patagonia does well to engage

customers with a small number of causes, it builds lots of small wins. Each win creates buzz, optimism and energy. That momentum pulls in more support. To me that also carries a fear factor. It raises a question about the required mix of professional skills on the wild fisheries side as well.

CORIN As I said before, science has a role to play in fisheries management, but at the moment the mix is wrong. The conservation of wild salmon in today’s world should be commercially led, in possession of some legal armoury and founded on solid scientific observations. We’ve not got the skills mix right.

JIM Patagonia certainly has a very professional approach to branding and business strategy. Competitors would love to discredit a big worthy brand; they have to be considered. The age of business only needing to make a profit and not break, or get caught breaking, the law is closing. We’ve seen investment giants such as Blackrock making it clear it expects firms to make a positive societal contribution if they want to be in specific

Blackrock funds. It doesn’t get much more hardnosed than Blackrock — a few years ago we might have joked about that being a sign of an approaching apocalypse. It’s a gamechanger when it comes to issues like sustainability and the environment. Public opinion drives legislation and it’s becoming less acceptable to break or get close to the line in many industries.

CORIN We absolutely need to tune into that reality. Big firms can’t expect to act as badly as a number of salmon farms do and not see public opinion move against them and maybe their investors. That’s why I’m so focused on calling them out. I took a radical campaign to Patagonia and its million or so followers. It centred around restoring wild salmon populations through eradicating the impacts of salmon farming. Of course, this benefits fishermen, but crucially it delivers benefits far beyond that. Ending the pollution, welfare issues and unsustainable use of resources associated with salmon farming delivers broad public benefits, way beyond the limitations of fishing.

An ‘intelligence report’ @salmon_scottish recommends surveillance of Smith and the other individual - whose name is redacted - for 48 hours before and after fish farming events https://t.co/Ei3CjzPPHQ @FerretScot pic.twitter.com/LeoHy06VBv
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 28, 2021

"Smith has shown The Ferret photographs of a GPS tracker allegedly found on the underside of his car in June 2021. Police Scotland confirmed it had received a report from Smith about the tracking device and the TSSC ‘intelligence report’ and that “enquiries remain ongoing” pic.twitter.com/B6N6QSzam8
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 27, 2021

Posted at 10:46 AM | Permalink

Press Statement: Ban All Ova Imports to Protect 'Scottish' Salmon!

"The @scotgov must immediately stop all imports of salmon eggs (ova) to prevent the spread of deadly Infectious Salmon Anaemia. Importing ova from countries with disease risks such as Norway and Iceland is a recipe for ruin" https://t.co/IadbzTUbD9 @ScotlandSalmon @DefraGovUK pic.twitter.com/xbvseP1rPF
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 27, 2021

"The Scottish Government must immediately stop all imports of salmon eggs (ova) to prevent the spread of deadly Infectious Salmon Anaemia," cautioned Don Staniford, Director of Scottish Salmon Watch. "If the Covid-19 crisis has taught us nothing else it is the need to close borders and introduce quarantine measures to stop the spread of diseases, viruses and pathogens. Importing ova from countries with disease risks such as Norway and Iceland is a recipe for ruin. How on earth is 'Scottish' salmon farming still permitted to import tens of millions of potentially virus-laden ova without any testing for Infectious Salmon Anaemia, Piscine Reovirus and other infectious agents?"

Now that pathogenic Infectious Salmon Anaemia is suspected in Iceland will Scotland close the border to ova imports to stop the risk of disease transfer? @MairiGougeon @marinescotland @ScotlandSalmon @WeAreBenchmark @fms_scotland @SalmonTroutCons https://t.co/3d7SGEVAb5 https://t.co/HMxIA5pCD8
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 26, 2021

Intrafish reported (26 November 2021):

First ever case of pathogenic ISA suspected in farmed salmon in Iceland @IntraFish https://t.co/cDiBHoiVyc
Is ISA already lurking in Scotland via imported ova from Iceland? @MairiGougeon @marinescotland @ScotlandSalmon @WeAreBenchmark pic.twitter.com/YBqUTW9OZV
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 26, 2021

Data published by the Scottish Government in September 2021 via the 'Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2020' detailed imports of ova from Iceland flooding 'Scottish' salmon farms following the ban on ova imports from Norway due to ISA risks in 2019:

Game Ova for Iceland?
Last year, 'Scottish' salmon farming imported 42 million salmon eggs (ova) from Iceland - how many were infected with Infectious Salmon Anaemia? @scotgov @MairiGougeon @marinescotland https://t.co/SupjI0ROMP @EFTAsecretariat @Iceland_Review #Iceland #ISA pic.twitter.com/VtJk2POf8m
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 27, 2021

In July 2021, I Tweeted: "Replacing imports of salmon eggs from Norway (where Infectious Salmon Anaemia is ravaging farms) with imports from Iceland (fingered in the spread of Piscine reovirus to USA) is like leaping out of the frying pan into the fire!"

Replacing imports of salmon eggs from Norway (where Infectious Salmon Anaemia is ravaging farms) with imports from Iceland (fingered in the spread of Piscine reovirus to USA) is like leaping out of the frying pan into the fire! https://t.co/ybGKdLWR9B @WeAreBenchmark @scotgov pic.twitter.com/wsmnKodIAp
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) July 7, 2021

Scottish Salmon Watch reported in July 2021:

A Freedom of Information (FOI) disclosure by the Scottish Government published online in April 2021 reveals that 'Scottish' salmon is now sourced predominantly from imported ova (eggs) from Iceland and Ireland substituting Norway (due to ongoing risks of the spread of Infectious Salmon Anaemia).

Here's all the ova imports since July 2020 (as disclosed by the Scottish Government via FOI in March 2021):

A further FOI disclosure by the Scottish Government in August 2021 revealed further ova imports from Iceland and Ireland after February 2021 (although the data does not provide information on the import consignor as with previous FOI disclosures):

And another FOI disclousre by the Scottish Government in August 2020 detailed ova imports from January to July 2020:

Another FOI disclosure by the Scottish Government in February 2020 detailed ova imports during 2019:

The FOI disclosure by the Scottish Government in February 2020 detailed ova imports in 2018:

A FOI disclosure by the Scottish Government in July 2018 detailing ova imports in 2017 was originally redacted as it was deemed 'commercially damaging':

However, following a FOI victory with a ruling by the Scottish Information Commissioner, ova import data for 2017 was finally disclosed in full in December 2019:

Ova import data for 2016 was disclosed via FOI by the Scottish Government in February 2020:

Scottish Salmon Watch asked in May 2021:

What viruses have been imported via infected ova from Norway, Iceland & Ireland into salmon farms in Scotland? @WeAreBenchmark @marinescotland @scotseafarms @LeroySeafood @MairiGougeon @MairiMcAllan @GreenerScotland @FergusEwingSNP @GriegShetland @salmobreed @ScotlandMowi https://t.co/DIqTXEAQu3
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) May 29, 2021

Scottish Salmon Watch wrote to Scottish Ministers in August 2021 following a report of ISA at Scottish Sea Farms in Loch Spelve:

Letter to Scottish Ministers: "What action is the Scottish Government taking to stop the spread of deadly ISA? What other salmon farms are affected and how many other positive cases have been detected?" https://t.co/d0hFOve4pg @scotgov @ScotGovNetZero @MairiGougeon @MairiMcAllan
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 30, 2021

"The Scottish Government should immediately quarantine @scotseafarms & test all salmon farms in Scotland for Infectious Salmon Anaemia" https://t.co/d0hFOve4pg @scotgov @ScotGovNetZero @MairiGougeon @MairiMcAllan @marinescotland @SSPOsays @APHAgovuk @rspcaassured @salmon_scottish pic.twitter.com/V2NEPx4Rst
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 30, 2021

"The ISA virus is a ticking time-bomb with the risk of spreading the deadly disease all too real. RSPCA Assured @scotseafarms in Loch Spelve could be ground zero in another ISA disease outbreak" https://t.co/d0hFOve4pg @scotgov @SSPOsays @rspcaassured @obantimes @scotgp pic.twitter.com/JguXT9RgkG
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 30, 2021

A Freedom of Information reply from the Scottish Government earlier this month (2 April 2020) revealed an abject lack of testing of viruses, pathogens and infectious diseases.

In April 2020 @GreenerScotland admitted that imported salmon eggs (ova) are not tested for Infectious Salmon Anaemia or Piscine Reovirus https://t.co/pllpGndiXN Is 'Scottish' salmon infected with deadly viruses? @DefraGovUK @marinescotland @FergusEwingMSP @strathearnrose @scotgp https://t.co/mFWoXWy7Eq pic.twitter.com/ZLDlLGUBoS
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 20, 2020

In February 2020, Scottish Salmon Watch wrote to Scottish Ministers with respect to bio-security protocols and safety precautions of imported ova.

What bio-security protocols & safety precautions are Scottish Ministers taking re. imports of ova for use on 'Scottish' salmon farms? https://t.co/uUvCg7mKfq @FergusEwingMSP @strathearnrose @KateForbesMSP @MairiGougeon @GreenerScotland @marinescotland @WeAreBenchmark @HGSalmonUK pic.twitter.com/YFjGUiaNlt
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) February 26, 2020

In February 2020, Scottish Salmon Watch and The Ferret revealed that imports of salmon eggs (ova) from Norway were banned in May 2019 following fears of the spread of Infectious Salmon Anaemia with Iceland replacing Norway as the primary source of 'Scottish' salmon.

Norwegian Salmon Egg Exports Banned Due to Disease Risks https://t.co/rEeHFKqewt @EFTAsecretariat @InfoMattilsynet @marinescotland @fiskeridir @NFdep @WeAreBenchmark @scotseafarms @MowiScotlandLtd @HGSalmonUK @FergusEwingMSP @DefraGovUK @SSPOsays #ISA #Norway #ScottishScamon pic.twitter.com/XmW4SaPYG2
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) February 24, 2020

Following a critical inspection by @EFTAsecretariat in May 2019 imports of Norwegian eggs were banned from Scotland due to the perceived risk of spreading Infectious Salmon Anemia @undercur https://t.co/r371khiJlW @InfoMattilsynet @WeAreBenchmark @fiskeridir @NFdep @SSPOsays
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) February 25, 2020

Vertical transmission of PRV via infected ova has been reported from Iceland to the United States. The Seattle Times reported in May 2018:

The Seattle Times reported in December 2018:

Salmon Business reported in December 2018:

Scottish Salmon Watch warned in a press release published in August 2020:

The press release (25 August 2020) included:

#COVID19 has taught us that closing borders is vital in stemming the spread of infectious diseases, viruses & pathogens https://t.co/MAShiQlkpw Salmon farms using imported eggs should be quarantined until they can prove they're free of deadly viruses! @GreenerScotland #ISA #PRV pic.twitter.com/2pazJ07x9U
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 26, 2020

Back in April 2019, Scottish Salmon Watch called for a ban on imports of ova from Norway and Iceland!

Breaking News: ISA reported at RSPCA Assured Scottish Sea Farms on the Isle of Mull

Letter to Scottish Ministers re. ISA in Scottish Salmon

Media Backgrounder: Scottish Salmon’s Recurring ISA Nightmare

Media Backgrounder: Norway’s Infectious Salmon Aquacalypse – Going Global Since 1984!

Eggsclusive: FOI Reveals 'Scottish' Salmon Imported As Ova from Iceland & Ireland - Norway eggs-pelled due to disease risks!

Massive Attack on "Rotten Edifice" of 'Scottish' Salmon

Norwegian Salmon Ova Slip Back Into Scotland (as Infectious Salmon Anaemia plagues salmon farms in Norway)

Norway's Infectious Salmon "Horror Show" Secretly Playing Now In Scotland?

EFTA disclose documents on disease-ridden Norwegian salmon farming but refuse more citing commercial confidentiality

'Scottish' salmon resumes imports of "ISA-free" eggs from Norway?

Undercurrent News: "Iceland replaces Norway as main source of Scottish salmon eggs following import ban"

Letter to Scottish Ministers: "Bio-security Protocols & Safety Precautions re. Ova Imports"

The Ferret: "Imports of Norwegian salmon eggs banned over deadly virus"

Norwegian Salmon Egg Exports Banned Due to Disease Risks

Game Ova for Scottish Salmon - Deadly disease delays egg imports from AquaGen in Norway

Deadly virus outbreak prompted fears over import of fish farm eggs to Scotland

Mail On Sunday: "90% of Scottish salmon 'ISN'T' from Scotland' - 66m eggs shipped in from abroad"

Salmon Eggsclusive: Scotland's 'King of Fish' is Now Viking Not Scottish!

The Ferret: "Deadly virus outbreak prompted fears over import of fish farm eggs to Scotland"

Game Ova for Scottish Salmon - Deadly disease delays egg imports from AquaGen in Norway

'Secret' Scottish Salmon - Norwegian-owned Scottish Sea Farms refuse to disclose information for ova imports as it would "cause substantial harm to their commercial interests"

Complete Mockery of the Brand 'Scottish Salmon': Norway bans import of Scottish salmon eggs citing disease risks & genetic impacts under the Nature Diversity Act

Imported eggs ruling 'makes a mockery of Scottish salmon'

Tartan imposters’ charge as fish egg imports hit 90%

'Norwegian' genes found in wild salmon populations in Wester Ross

"The ISA virus is a ticking time-bomb with the risk of spreading the deadly disease all too real. RSPCA Assured @scotseafarms in Loch Spelve could be ground zero in another ISA disease outbreak" https://t.co/d0hFOve4pg @scotgov @SSPOsays @rspcaassured @obantimes @scotgp pic.twitter.com/JguXT9RgkG
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 30, 2021

"In order to protect the genetic integrity of Scotland's iconic Atlantic salmon, all farmed salmon including ova and smolts should be screened for ISA, Piscine Reovirus and other viruses, diseases and pathogens" https://t.co/MSiOJMBDie @scotgov @MairiGougeon @MairiMcAllan pic.twitter.com/wgh0Uioe5Y
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) December 2, 2021

Posted at 10:10 AM | Permalink

Herald/Ferret: "Scottish Salmon Company chief hired investigator to 'snoop' on fish farming critic"

"This Big Brother level of corporate snooping is frankly disturbing" @williemackenzie @GreenpeaceUK "Not being able to win the argument by fair means, a part of the fish farming industry seems to be resorting to these shady tactics" https://t.co/Ei3CjzPPHQ @FerretScot
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 27, 2021

The Ferret reported (27 November 2021):

"Smith has shown The Ferret photographs of a GPS tracker allegedly found on the underside of his car in June 2021. Police Scotland confirmed it had received a report from Smith about the tracking device and the TSSC ‘intelligence report’ and that “enquiries remain ongoing” pic.twitter.com/B6N6QSzam8
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 27, 2021

Download the source documents via The Ferret:

An ‘intelligence report’ @salmon_scottish recommends surveillance of Smith and the other individual - whose name is redacted - for 48 hours before and after fish farming events https://t.co/Ei3CjzPPHQ @FerretScot pic.twitter.com/LeoHy06VBv
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 28, 2021

Here's video footage from by Corin Smith at The Scottish Salmon Company's Vacasay salmon farm in Loch Roag in August 2018 which triggered the surveillance:

The Herald reported (27 November 2021):

The front page of today's Herald newspaper reports on how "Salmon chief spied on salmon critic" with the exclusive story on how Corin Smith of Inside Scottish Salmon Feedlots was spied on by @salmon_scottish @ScotlandSalmon https://t.co/7h7cKbnm62 @PaulDobson95 @heraldscotland pic.twitter.com/fDSydtSZ2w
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 27, 2021

Here's the newspaper version via PressReader:

Front page exclusive in today's @heraldscotland @PaulDobson95 @FerretScot "Internal industry documents show that a former chief executive of The Scottish Salmon Company requested an intelligence report on the fish farming campaigner Corin Smith" @salmon_scottish @ScotlandSalmon pic.twitter.com/gh7DvIxNyE
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 27, 2021

Just off out with the family for a lovely drive in the country - but first I better check in case @salmon_scottish @MowiScotlandLtd @scotseafarms @GriegShetland @ScotlandSalmon @kamesfishfarm @Folketrygdfond have fitted a GPS tracking device to my car! https://t.co/Ei3CjzPPHQ pic.twitter.com/ROVPu7nFK5
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 28, 2021

Off to Scotland soon for more secret filming & in view of all the snooping I've decided to invest in high tech countermeasures. Shhh - please don't tell any private investigators hired by 'Scottish' salmon! pic.twitter.com/TOYiJo2daN
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 29, 2021

Posted at 07:24 AM | Permalink

ISA in Iceland - will Scotland ban ova imports to prevent disease risks as with Norway?

Now that pathogenic Infectious Salmon Anaemia is suspected in Iceland will Scotland close the border to ova imports to stop the risk of disease transfer? @MairiGougeon @marinescotland @ScotlandSalmon @WeAreBenchmark @fms_scotland @SalmonTroutCons https://t.co/3d7SGEVAb5 https://t.co/HMxIA5pCD8
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 26, 2021

Undercurrent News reported (26 November 2021):

Ups!
Spreading diseases, parasites, pollution,destruction and death. All in one exportable package!
Nice move salmon farmers! 🤯💀💔🤮 pic.twitter.com/MfgqPyNzSG
— conscienciacomún (@benonagual) November 26, 2021

Intrafish reported (26 November 2021):

First ever case of pathogenic ISA suspected in farmed salmon in Iceland @IntraFish https://t.co/cDiBHoiVyc
Is ISA already lurking in Scotland via imported ova from Iceland? @MairiGougeon @marinescotland @ScotlandSalmon @WeAreBenchmark pic.twitter.com/YBqUTW9OZV
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 26, 2021

Salmon Business reported (26 November 2021) that the suspected case of ISA was at Norwegian-owned Laxar who is understood to source salmon eggs (ova) from Stofnfiskur:

Salmon Business reports that the suspected case of Infectious Salmon Anaemia in Iceland is at Norwegian-owned Laxar who is understood to source salmon eggs (ova) from Stofnfiskur (Benchmark) https://t.co/UxtlKVVuhW @WeAreBenchmark @EFTAsecretariat @Iceland_Review @MFAIceland pic.twitter.com/VcZ87Hep3E
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 27, 2021

News of ISA in Iceland dominated the Icelandic media yesterday (26 November 2021) with the wild fishing association calling for all ISA infected farmed salmon to be slaughtered:

Here's the official statement from the Icelandic Government (26 November 2021) which cited the first ISA outbreak in Scotland in 1998:

Fish Farmer reported (29 November 2021):

Since June 2019 (after Norwegian ova were banned due to Infectious Salmon Anaemia), #Iceland has accounted for 68% of ova imports into #Scotland with #Norway accounting for less than 1%. Now that #ISA is in Iceland will ova imports be banned? @scotgov @MairiGougeon @MairiMcAllan pic.twitter.com/ppEROAmYDN
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 29, 2021

Fish Farmer reported in November 2019 that Laxar had reported IPA (Infectious Pancreatic Necrosis):

Data published by the Scottish Government in September 2021 via the 'Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2020' detailed imports of ova from Iceland flooding 'Scottish' salmon farms following the ban on ova imports from Norway due to ISA risks in 2019:

Here's video footage shot inside Iceland's disease-ridden salmon farms in August 2021:

Nothing to see here - just a farmed salmon missing half its face. All perfectly normal in the world of "responsibly sourced" salmon. Move along now #SalMar #Arnarlax #ArcticFish #NorwayRoyalSalmon #Iceland https://t.co/X0oVELF61d pic.twitter.com/vyyofcaJzu
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 30, 2021

Scottish Salmon Watch reported in August 2021 that ISA had been found at a salmon farm in Loch Spelve operated by Norwegian-owned Scottish Sea Farms:

Infectious Salmon Anaemia comes back to haunt Scottish salmon - positive test reported by @marinescotland @rspcaassured @scotseafarms on Isle of Mull. Buy your fresh virus-laden Scottish salmon @marksandspencer - how many more farms are infected? @MowiScotlandLtd @salmon_scottish pic.twitter.com/JUjMS335xa
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 30, 2021

Letter to Scottish Ministers: "What action is the Scottish Government taking to stop the spread of deadly ISA? What other salmon farms are affected and how many other positive cases have been detected?" https://t.co/d0hFOve4pg @scotgov @ScotGovNetZero @MairiGougeon @MairiMcAllan
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 30, 2021

"The Scottish Government should immediately quarantine @scotseafarms & test all salmon farms in Scotland for Infectious Salmon Anaemia" https://t.co/d0hFOve4pg @scotgov @ScotGovNetZero @MairiGougeon @MairiMcAllan @marinescotland @SSPOsays @APHAgovuk @rspcaassured @salmon_scottish pic.twitter.com/V2NEPx4Rst
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 30, 2021

Scottish Salmon Watch reported in July 2021:

Replacing imports of salmon eggs from Norway (where Infectious Salmon Anaemia is ravaging farms) with imports from Iceland (fingered in the spread of Piscine reovirus to USA) is like leaping out of the frying pan into the fire! https://t.co/ybGKdLWR9B @WeAreBenchmark @scotgov pic.twitter.com/wsmnKodIAp
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) July 7, 2021

Scottish Salmon Watch asked in May 2021:

What viruses have been imported via infected ova from Norway, Iceland & Ireland into salmon farms in Scotland? @WeAreBenchmark @marinescotland @scotseafarms @LeroySeafood @MairiGougeon @MairiMcAllan @GreenerScotland @FergusEwingSNP @GriegShetland @salmobreed @ScotlandMowi https://t.co/DIqTXEAQu3
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) May 29, 2021

A Freedom of Information reply from the Scottish Government earlier this month (2 April 2020) revealed an abject lack of testing of viruses, pathogens and infectious diseases.

In April 2020 @GreenerScotland admitted that imported salmon eggs (ova) are not tested for Infectious Salmon Anaemia or Piscine Reovirus https://t.co/pllpGndiXN Is 'Scottish' salmon infected with deadly viruses? @DefraGovUK @marinescotland @FergusEwingMSP @strathearnrose @scotgp https://t.co/mFWoXWy7Eq pic.twitter.com/ZLDlLGUBoS
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 20, 2020

In February 2020, Scottish Salmon Watch wrote to Scottish Ministers with respect to bio-security protocols and safety precautions of imported ova.

What bio-security protocols & safety precautions are Scottish Ministers taking re. imports of ova for use on 'Scottish' salmon farms? https://t.co/uUvCg7mKfq @FergusEwingMSP @strathearnrose @KateForbesMSP @MairiGougeon @GreenerScotland @marinescotland @WeAreBenchmark @HGSalmonUK pic.twitter.com/YFjGUiaNlt
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) February 26, 2020

In February 2020, Scottish Salmon Watch and The Ferret revealed that imports of salmon eggs (ova) from Norway were banned in May 2019 following fears of the spread of Infectious Salmon Anaemia with Iceland replacing Norway as the primary source of 'Scottish' salmon.

Norwegian Salmon Egg Exports Banned Due to Disease Risks https://t.co/rEeHFKqewt @EFTAsecretariat @InfoMattilsynet @marinescotland @fiskeridir @NFdep @WeAreBenchmark @scotseafarms @MowiScotlandLtd @HGSalmonUK @FergusEwingMSP @DefraGovUK @SSPOsays #ISA #Norway #ScottishScamon pic.twitter.com/XmW4SaPYG2
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) February 24, 2020

Following a critical inspection by @EFTAsecretariat in May 2019 imports of Norwegian eggs were banned from Scotland due to the perceived risk of spreading Infectious Salmon Anemia @undercur https://t.co/r371khiJlW @InfoMattilsynet @WeAreBenchmark @fiskeridir @NFdep @SSPOsays
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) February 25, 2020

Vertical transmission of PRV via infected ova has been reported from Iceland to the United States. The Seattle Times reported in May 2018:

The Seattle Times reported in December 2018:

Salmon Business reported in December 2018:

Scottish Salmon Watch warned in a press release published in August 2020:

The press release (25 August 2020) included:

#COVID19 has taught us that closing borders is vital in stemming the spread of infectious diseases, viruses & pathogens https://t.co/MAShiQlkpw Salmon farms using imported eggs should be quarantined until they can prove they're free of deadly viruses! @GreenerScotland #ISA #PRV pic.twitter.com/2pazJ07x9U
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 26, 2020

"We need to head off the accusations of disease in Icelandic eggs though suggest we don't address the accusation directly" said @scotgov @marinescotland @ScotGovNetZero employee in February 2020. Now that ISA is reported in Iceland will you be banning ova imports? @MairiGougeon pic.twitter.com/Wibvt32wnY
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 29, 2021

Letter to Scottish Ministers re. ISA in Scottish Salmon

Media Backgrounder: Scottish Salmon’s Recurring ISA Nightmare

Media Backgrounder: Norway’s Infectious Salmon Aquacalypse – Going Global Since 1984!

Eggsclusive: FOI Reveals 'Scottish' Salmon Imported As Ova from Iceland & Ireland - Norway eggs-pelled due to disease risks!

Massive Attack on "Rotten Edifice" of 'Scottish' Salmon

Norwegian Salmon Ova Slip Back Into Scotland (as Infectious Salmon Anaemia plagues salmon farms in Norway)

Norway's Infectious Salmon "Horror Show" Secretly Playing Now In Scotland?

EFTA disclose documents on disease-ridden Norwegian salmon farming but refuse more citing commercial confidentiality

'Scottish' salmon resumes imports of "ISA-free" eggs from Norway?

Undercurrent News: "Iceland replaces Norway as main source of Scottish salmon eggs following import ban"

Letter to Scottish Ministers: "Bio-security Protocols & Safety Precautions re. Ova Imports"

The Ferret: "Imports of Norwegian salmon eggs banned over deadly virus"

Norwegian Salmon Egg Exports Banned Due to Disease Risks

Game Ova for Scottish Salmon - Deadly disease delays egg imports from AquaGen in Norway

Deadly virus outbreak prompted fears over import of fish farm eggs to Scotland

Mail On Sunday: "90% of Scottish salmon 'ISN'T' from Scotland' - 66m eggs shipped in from abroad"

Salmon Eggsclusive: Scotland's 'King of Fish' is Now Viking Not Scottish!

The Ferret: "Deadly virus outbreak prompted fears over import of fish farm eggs to Scotland"

Game Ova for Scottish Salmon - Deadly disease delays egg imports from AquaGen in Norway

'Secret' Scottish Salmon - Norwegian-owned Scottish Sea Farms refuse to disclose information for ova imports as it would "cause substantial harm to their commercial interests"

Complete Mockery of the Brand 'Scottish Salmon': Norway bans import of Scottish salmon eggs citing disease risks & genetic impacts under the Nature Diversity Act

Imported eggs ruling 'makes a mockery of Scottish salmon'

Tartan imposters’ charge as fish egg imports hit 90%