Green Around the Gills : 16 January 2022

Imported salmon ova (eggs) "are all tested for a plethora of diseases" claims @HGSalmonUK in this week's @argyllshiread Meanwhile, @scotgov admit that "Marine Scotland Science does not undertake routine testing on ova to screen for the presence of aquatic animal pathogens" pic.twitter.com/k32aZDfHa6
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) January 16, 2022

Today (16 January 2022), Scottish Salmon Watch wrote to the Scottish Government and Hendrix/Landcatch asking for the test results from all the ova tested for a "plethora of diseases" as claimed by Hendrix Genetics UK in this week's Argyllshire Advertiser.

From: Don Staniford <[email protected]>
Date: Sun, Jan 16, 2022 at 9:16 AM
Subject: Testing of ALL ova for a "plethora of diseases" claims Landcatch - is this true?
To: <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>
Cc: Louise Curtis <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>, <[email protected]>

Further to previous correspondence on the issue of ova imports and testing for infectious diseases, Scottish Salmon Watch is perplexed by a statement by the general manager of Hendrix Genetics UK (Jarl van den Berg) in this week's Argyllshire Advertiser; namely:

Mr van den Berg's claims that all ova are tested for a plethora of diseases is not backed up by the published evidence via the Fish Health Inspectorate's 'Case Information; for example. Here's details of an inspection report of 5 million ova at Landcatch's Ormsary Hatchery 'inspected' in January 2018 (Case 2018-0013, p73-81) with the admission in a letter from Marine Scotland Science dated 19 January 2018 that "no samples were taken for disease analysis":

Note that a Freedom of Information reply from the Scottish Government in April 2020 revealed an abject lack of testing of viruses, pathogens and infectious diseases:

Moreover, earlier this week on 10 January 2022 the Scottish Government once again confirmed the lack of testing of ova for infectious diseases, viruses and pathogens:

Read in full via Letter from the Scottish Government dated 10 January 2022

In order to ground-truth the claims by Hendrix/Landcatch in the Argyllshire Advertiser could the Scottish Government please therefore provide information on testing of salmon ova (including imported, 'home-grown' ova and ova tested for export) for diseases, pathogens, bacteria, viruses (indeed the whole "plethora of diseases" referred to by Hendrix Landcatch) since 1 January 2018.

Please include emails, test results, photos, sampling, data, Excel spreadsheets and any other information relating to testing of ova for a plethora of diseases since 1 January 2018.

If the Scottish Government has no data on testing by Marine Scotland Science or other Scottish Government agencies - as suggested previously - then please include data conducted via private contracts or at least include emails, letters and any other information relating to the testing of ova for diseases. Please include any Cabinet Briefings, correspondence with Hendrix/Landcatch and any other salmon farming interests.

For example, Scottish Salmon Watch reported in June 2019 via a press release https://donstaniford.typepad.com/files/pr-virus-laden-scottish-salmon-5-june-2019.pdf

As Scottish Salmon Watch pointed out in a letter to Scottish Ministers in February 2020, there is an "optional service" to screen ova for PRV (and presumably a "plethora of diseases"):

Please include any information relating to this "optional service of screening" for PRV and any other diseases, pathogens and viruses in salmon ova.

Please consider this a formal request for information under the relevant FOI and Environmental Information regulations.

Please provide the information electronically - if the data set is simply too large to include all the ova tested for a plethora of diseases then please Zip the huge files.

Please provide a receipt for this FOI request.

Thanks,

Don Staniford

Director, Scottish Salmon Watch

“Marine Scotland Science does not undertake routine testing on ova to screen for the presence of aquatic animal pathogens” admitted @scotgov in a FOI disclosure this week. 93 million salmon ova were imported into salmon farms in Scotland in 2020 & 2021!https://t.co/0CFJz9EkPO pic.twitter.com/xAcPOpHNgn
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) January 14, 2022

Scottish Salmon Watch reported last month (1 December 2021):

The Catch with Landcatch - how Lithgows sold Scottish salmon down the river to Dutch & US investors! @HGSalmonUK @BetterBreeding @kamesfishfarm @WeAreBenchmark @ScotlandSalmon @scotgov https://t.co/7WsT6ju1Gv pic.twitter.com/uy5Vc3oCPq
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) December 1, 2021

Scottish Salmon Watch reported in April 2020:

Anyone for disease-ridden Scottish salmon fresh from Landcatch marinaded in antibiotic & cancer-causing Formalin? https://t.co/rSvO6Hz6V7 @HGSalmonUK @salmon_scottish New 'Case Information' published today @marinescotland The horror of #Scottish #Salmon @ciwf @PETAUK @APHAgovuk pic.twitter.com/NWDVRGdb4Y
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) April 6, 2020

When I first visited Ormsary in December 2019 it was in the dark:

When I visited Ormsary in September 2020 - there is a public beach with public access - I was assaulted by Landcatch's general manager Jarl van den Berg who objected to filming and tried to grab my Go Pro camera.

Hendrix boss Jarl van den Berg plays it heavy like Jimmy! https://t.co/0M4VvZGbaB When filming at Landcatch's salmon hatchery at Ormsary I was assaulted by @HGSalmonUK & @policescotland issued a warning @BetterBreeding Is Jarl the son of Hendrix CEO Antoon van den Berg? pic.twitter.com/yvx3ZQ4TLw
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 18, 2020

Landcatch's general manager Jarl van den Berg objected to Scottish Salmon Watch taking samples of salmon hatchery effluents being discharged onto a public beach on Loch Caolisport in Argyll.

Scottish Salmon Watch asked Police Scotland to give the 29-year old a warning rather than file a formal complaint that may have led to an assault charge.

Sir James Lithgow - who sold Landcatch to Hendrix Genetics in 2011 - was so intimidatory when I visited later in September 2020 that I felt scared for my safety and called Police Scotland (who warned the baron for intimidation).

Police Scotland issue warning to Ormsary Estate for intimidation & harassment @HGSalmonUK pic.twitter.com/Kh3jSFhjfd
— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 13, 2020