Green Around the Gills

Death Deflation: 13 Million Morts On Scottish Salmon Farms in 2021 - More Like 22 Million (& maybe 50 million if you add freshwater)!

 

How may farmed salmon died in Scotland last year?
We don't know because @ScottishEPA stopped publishing the data in 2013 after @ScotlandSalmon lobbied vs disclosure arguing publication would be 'commercially damaging'. But based on previous data it could be 22 million morts! pic.twitter.com/7b7YeE00Xw

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 29, 2022

 

 

Salmon Business reported earlier this week (27 September 2022) that the disease-ridden Scottish salmon farming sector suffered from 13 million mortalities last year:

 

Scotland’s destruction of 13 million salmon prompts calls for investigation https://t.co/XhaFfSo5U9
Surely 13 million morts per year is an underestimate? @ScottishEPA @marinescotland @SP_RuralAffairs @ScotlandSalmon @1edmountain @fincarson @ArianeBurgessHI @Martin1Williams

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 29, 2022

 

 

 

 

However, the 13 million mortality figure is at best an honest underestimate and at worst it represents industry-promoted 'fake news'.   Since no official mortality numbers have been published since 2012 (when 8.5 million morts were reported by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency),  reporting a figure of 13 million dead Scottish salmon as fact - as the Herald On Sunday did on 25 September 2022 - warrants ground-truthing.   

 

 

 

 

In fact, here's the latest official data on mortality numbers published by SEPA in 2013 - as reported by Rob Edwards in The Sunday Herald in February 2013:

 

 

 

 

If you use basic maths - and ratios of tonnage to numbers - the missing data since 2012 can be extrapolated with a figure for 2021 of up to 22 million mortalities:

 

 

 

 

When Edward Mountain MSP - former convenor of the Scottish Parliament's Rural Committee - raised the issue of 'alarming' mortalities with his former colleagues in a letter dated 6 September 2022 he cited published statistics on mortalities by weight sourced from Scotland's Aquaculture (not Aquaculture Scotland - a web portal where data supplied by salmon farming companies is collated online by SEPA and the Scottish Government):

 

 

 

 

So where did the "nearly 13 million" morts figure come from as quoted by Martin Williams in The Herald On Sunday (25 September 2022)?    Has the 'Scottish' salmon farming industry been providing the Scottish Parliament's Rural Committee with false figures which woefully underestimate the true numbers of morts?  Has the Scottish Government been badly briefing the Scottish Parliament in a desperate effort to downplay the escalating problems of mass mortalities?  Or maybe the Herald On Sunday was just erring on the side of caution with a conservative estimate?  

 

 

 

Moreover, does it even matter if the 13 million morts figure was presented as a matter of fact rather than couching it in conjecture as a guesstimate?  

 

Censored: 'commercially damaging' @SalmonScotland Did 22 million salmon die in sea cages & 26 million in freshwater hatcheries & farms last year? https://t.co/CM9bTCPvrQ
Surely it is time to force disclosure of mort numbers? @ScottishEPA @SP_RuralAffairs @scotgov @scotgp pic.twitter.com/yQF9mZAdZP

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 30, 2022

 

 

 

The simple answer is that it does matter since lobbying by the salmon farming industry over the last decade has kept the true numbers of mortalities on salmon farms secret. 

 

If you're looking for data on numbers of @rspcaassured dead farmed salmon in Scotland they don't exist - in 2013 @SSPOsays lobbied @ScottishEPA not to disclose mortalities as it was deemed commercially damaging! https://t.co/cDEyvS04dO @strathearnrose @salmon_scottish @scotgp pic.twitter.com/FICRbrpGXJ

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 2, 2020

 

 

 

The fact is that since 2013 there has been no data published - and perhaps not even officially collected - detailing the number of mortalities.  As Rob Edwards reported in The Sunday Herald in October 2013:

 

 

 

 

The Times reported in October 2013:

 

 

 

 

Here's the letter from the Scottish Salmon Producers Organisation (renamed Salmon Scotland in November 2021) to SEPA in February 2013:

 

 

 

And here's SEPA's reply in March 2013:

 

 

 

 

Here's the letter from the salmon farming lobby @ScotlandSalmon to @ScottishEPA in 2013 arguing that the number of farmed salmon mortalities not be disclosed as it was 'commercially damaging'.
SEPA rolled over like a lap-dog & duly obliged!https://t.co/ADPsWot5Rv @robedwards53 pic.twitter.com/OAgUQIHHWI

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 29, 2022

 

 

Hence since 2012 - when data was published by SEPA - there has been no official data on mortality numbers (something which The Herald On Sunday should have pointed out to its readers on 25 September 2022).    The failure of the salmon farming industry to report mortality numbers has not stopped speculation and informed guesstimates of the numbers of dead farmed salmon.    The Times reported in July 2017:

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

In October 2017, The Sunday Herald estimated the number of farmed salmon mortalities in Scotland as "up to 10 million" in 2016 (using an estimate sourced from the salmon farming industry).

 

 

 

In March 2018, The Herald estimated mortalities on salmon farms in Scotland at "more than 11 million fish":

 

 

So, all the 2017 stats are now out for Scottish salmon farming and the fish mortalities are as bad as feared/predicted: just over 25,700 tonnes of dead salmon in 2017. The worst year on record. The highest ever in tonnage and as a % of biomass (salmon farmed). Pretty damning. pic.twitter.com/f6JFvD0YCG

— Joe Crowley (@joe_crowley) March 2, 2018

 

 

 

I attempted to estimate farmed salmon mortalities - in both freshwater and seawater - in November 2020 coming up with ca. 42 million dead fish in 2019:

 

Alexa, how many salmon die each year on Scottish salmon farms? 42 million* https://t.co/jRQzhheju6
Sadly we don't know for sure as the answer is deemed "commercially damaging" by @sspo!
Will @ScottishEPA & @marinescotland force disclosure? @salmon_scottish @rspcaassured pic.twitter.com/fua9nkM6g3

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 11, 2020

 

 

 

 

In December 2020, BBC Countryfile put mortality data published by the Scottish Government to the salmon farming lobby but Tavish Scott failed to recognise the official data:

 

26% mortality rate on Scottish salmon farms (in just the sea phase of production) - that means one in four RSPCA certified salmon are dying a horrible death! @rspcaassured @SSPOsays @marinescotland https://t.co/G4dXeILsTk @BBCCountryfile @joe_crowley @SalmonTroutCons @scotgp pic.twitter.com/4Nm8CV3fLA

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) December 7, 2020

 

 

"I don't recognise your figure (26% mortality)" says @tavishscott to @joe_crowley @BBCCountryfile https://t.co/orFCNlIgG7
Even Mr Magoo would recognise the fact that over a quarter of all Scottish salmon are dying in just the sea-phase of production! @marinescotland @SSPOsays pic.twitter.com/OwDboVoqgA

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) December 7, 2020

 

 

 

In April 2021, when interviewed by BBC Scotland Tavish Scott once again failed to publicly recognise that millions of farmed salmon were dying due to infectious diseases, viruses and pathogens.

 

How is the Chief Executive of the Norwegian-owned 'Scottish' salmon farming lobby allowed to lie on BBC Scotland? @BBCScotNine @BBCScotland @mmgeissler
Surely lying on the BBC is a breach of the BBC's Editorial Values & Standards? @tavishscott @SSPOsays https://t.co/LOnvsiyvVD https://t.co/Ua4oDuFzl7

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) April 19, 2021

 

 

 

Whatever the real figure for mortalities, it is clear that some salmon farms and some salmon farming companies are worst than others.

 

Named & Shamed: Here's Scottish salmon's 50%+ mortality club - sites where more than half the "responsibly sourced" fish died a cruel death! @rspcaassured @ASC_aqua @ScotlandSalmon @MowiScotlandLtd @Folketrygdfond @WesterRossSalmo @GriegShetland @LochDuartSalmon @TavishScott pic.twitter.com/6YJCwkoL2I

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 26, 2022

 

 

 

Question @ScotlandSalmon - why are mortality rates so much higher at Bakkafrost (The Scottish Salmon Co) @Folketrygdfond & @WesterRossSalmo compared to @CookeScotland & @GriegShetland? https://t.co/Ju6L8xNZjw @LochDuartSalmon @fincarson @TavishScott @ArianeBurgessHI @scotgp pic.twitter.com/AxMzTuFLJ9

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 27, 2022

 

 

 

 

 

 

Finally, when people talk about farmed salmon mortalities of 13 million per year or even 22 million then it must not be forgotten that this refers solely to the sea phase of production - many more million mortalities (perhaps another 20 million per year) occur during the freshwater phase of production.    Here's the data from the latest fish farm production survey published by the Scottish Government in September 2021 (a new survey will be published on 27 October 2022) which shows that 78 million ova (eggs) were laid down on salmon farms in Scotland in 2020 with 52.5 million smolts put to sea: 

 

 

 

 

In other words, over 26 million fish went missing between being laid down as eggs in the hatchery to being put to sea as smolts (that's a mortality rate of 33% or a third of all fish being killed).    The mortality rate in the sea phase of production is another 20%+ - depending on the year and the region.  The latest mortality/survival data currently available is for 2018 - when the mortality rate was 24.1% (i.e. 75.9% survival):

 

 

 

The regional picture shows significant differences with relatively high survival rates (i.e. low mortality rates) in Orkney compared to low survival rates (i.e. high mortality rates) in Shetland and the Western Isles:

 

 

 

 

So when you read about 13 million mortalities on salmon farms in Scotland during 2021, it is just the tip of a much larger iceberg which certainly includes another 25 million+ in the freshwater stage of production and perhaps another 6-9 million morts in the sea phase of production.   Sadly, the numbers of morts has been a moot point ever since 2012 (the last date that data is available following industry lobbying).  Instead, the Scottish Government publishes a watered down version of mortalities which only records mortalities over a certain threshold (understood to be over 1% weekly mortality) thereby woefully underestimating the numbers of mortalities.  

 

 

 

 

Even without the full picture of mortality numbers, the information is shocking.   An analysis of the Scottish Government mortality data published by $camon $cotland earlier this month (26 September 2022) illustrates the scale of Scottish salmon's mortality problem:

 

 

 

Revealed: Scottish Sea Farms fail to report mortality numbers in 61% of 'Mortality Event Reports' @marinescotland - that's 167 missing cases which could be over 2 million @rspcaassured farmed salmon! @scotseafarms @marksandspencer @LeroySeafood @SSPOsays https://t.co/pvZAMsdhqC pic.twitter.com/vWsKR4apLC

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) March 9, 2021

 

 

All hail Bakkafrost Scotland (formerly The Scottish Salmon Company) - Scottish salmon's King of Death! https://t.co/Ju6L8xNZjw
How can 82.1% mortality (that's 4 in every 5 fish dying a cruel death) be branded "responsibly sourced"? @rspcaassured @ScotlandSalmon @Folketrygdfond pic.twitter.com/zc4OuDlw2x

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 26, 2022

 

 

 

Here's the top 20 (i.e. worst/most) 'Mortality Event Reports' reported by salmon farming companies to the Scottish Government since January 2017:

 

 

 

To illustrate the scale of the mortality problem in hatcheries, here's 'Case Information' for Mowi's Inchmore salmon farm (sourced from an inspection by the Scottish Government in May 2022):

 

 

 

 

In other words, that's over 2 million mortalities within the first dozen or so weeks of eggs being laid down in ONE hatchery.  Mowi's Inchmore hatchery has a history of mortality problems going back right to its inception.

 

Mowi's Mortality Nigthmare - Farmed Salmon Is Dead in the Water https://t.co/psbmcoVanz
New data reveals 234,000 dead salmon in June with 118,000 dead due to "lack of oxygen" at Mowi's @rspcaassured Inchmore hatchery @MowiScotlandLtd @APHAgovuk @marinescotland @SSPOsays #Salmon pic.twitter.com/XurlBSPGqc

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 31, 2021

 

 

In October 2018, The Sunday Mail reported that 500,000 farmed salmon had died at Mowi's flagship hatchery at Inchmore - opened only a few months earlier by Scotland's Cabinet Secretary for Rural Economy, Fergus Ewing.

 

 

 

 

 

So whether you honestly believe there were 13 million mortalities on salmon farms last year - or perhaps nearly 50 million (in both freshwater and seawater) - it is surely time that SEPA, the Scottish Government and Scottish Parliament forced full disclosure by the salmon farming industry with respect to the scale of mortalities?  The Norwegian Government publishes annual data on mortalities on salmon farms - detailed as 54 million in 2021 - so why the secrecy in Scotland? 

 

"This week, @vetinst_no presented its report on fish health. It was a saddening read. What else can you say about a report that establishes 54 million fish die annually in our fish farms" @Arne_O_Holm @HighNorthNews https://t.co/Jb9onIgXF7
How many farmed salmon die in Scotland? pic.twitter.com/9whW7ze2i6

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) March 11, 2022

 

 

Censored: Salmon farmers in Scotland refuse to publish numbers of deaths as disclosure is "commercially damaging" https://t.co/FiaGuR3KoG
Yet Norway published 2020 data detailing 52 million deaths - why the double standard when Norway owns 80% of 'Scottish' salmon? @ScottishEPA pic.twitter.com/S6d45qnsTx

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) March 11, 2021

 

 

 

$camon $cotland today (30 September 2022) wrote to the Scottish Parliament's Rural Affairs, Islands and Natural Environment Committee demanding the disclosure of mortality numbers on salmon farms (download the letter as a PDF online here).  

 

 

"Force the salmon farming industry to publish mortality numbers" @SP_RuralAffairs @ScotlandSalmon @ScottishEPA @marinescotland
"It is not difficult to see why the salmon farming industry do not want the data disclosed to the public" @TavishScott @ArianeBurgessHI @fincarson pic.twitter.com/Cb7pub2QDy

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 30, 2022

 

 

As Tavish Scott so presciently told Holyrood magazine in November 2020: "We must confront the arguments where they lack fact". 

 

"We must confront the arguments where they lack fact" says @tavishscott @HolyroodDaily https://t.co/iIpHiZNRyE
How many mortalities does @SSPOsays report each year?
Fact - zero (disclosure would be "commercially damaging") @ScottishEPA @TerryAHearn https://t.co/RJ4HGLLBWx pic.twitter.com/0LmEKS5zRA

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) December 1, 2020

 

 

 

Here's a letter sent to The Herald On Sunday:

 

From: Don Staniford <[email protected]>
Date: Fri, Sep 30, 2022 at 10:04 AM
Subject: Letter to The Herald On Sunday
To: <[email protected]>
Cc: Martin Williams <[email protected]>

Re: Inquiry into salmon farming demanded after "sickening" levels of fish deaths (Herald On Sunday, 25 September 2022)

 

Whilst your continued coverage of the disease-ridden salmon farming industry is welcomed, $camon $cotland feels that readers were misled when the alarming number of mortalities on salmon farms last year was presented as fact. 

 

Basic math ratios based on previously published data on mortality numbers point to a figure of between 19.7 million and 22 million dead farmed salmon in 2021 not the "nearly 13 million" figure reported by The Herald On Sunday. 

 

 

 

The fact is that since 2012 there has been no data on mortality numbers published.  As Rob Edwards reported in The Sunday Herald back in October 2013 the publication of data on mortality numbers stopped following lobbying by the salmon farming industry who claimed that disclosure would be 'commercially damaging'. 

 

Nor does the estimate of 13 million mortalities on salmon farms in Scotland last year include mortalities in freshwater hatcheries and smolt farms.  The true figure of mortalities throughout the life-cycle of a farmed salmon - from hatch to 'catch' - could be close to 50 million. 

 

Whatever the real number of mortalities on salmon farms - and until Salmon Scotland publishes the data the public will not know - it is clear that the death rate inside disease-ridden cages has reached record levels with some sites reporting mortality rates in excess of 80%. 

 

 

 

If four out of every five cows or sheep in a field were dying the public would be outraged.  The call by Edward Mountain MSP - as former convenor of the Scottish Parliament's Rural Committee - for a further inquiry into salmon farming must therefore be supported as a matter of urgency.   

 

 

Don Staniford

 

Director, $camon $cotland

 

 

Tel: 07771 541826

 

 

 

If four out of every five cows or sheep in a field were dying the public would be outraged - why are people happy to buy salmon from farms with 80% mortality? https://t.co/CM9bTCxmdI pic.twitter.com/GRftRi1YhD

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 30, 2022

 

Whatever the real number of mortalities on salmon farms - and until @ScotlandSalmon publishes the data the public will not know - it is clear that the death rate inside disease-ridden cages has reached record levels with some sites reporting mortality rates in excess of 80% pic.twitter.com/PYarGnPNkw

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) October 1, 2022

 

 

Read more via:

Letter to Scottish Parliament re. farmed salmon mortalities "increasing at an alarming rate" from former convenor of Rural Committee

Press Release: "Year of the Dead Salmon: Scottish Salmon Plagued by Mass Mortality Problems"

Media Backgrounder: Year of the Dead Salmon - Bakkafrost Scotland is the King of Death!

Herald On Sunday: "Inquiry into salmon farming demanded after "sickening" levels of fish deaths"

Fake News? Over 50% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon Farms - how can supermarkets advertise it as "responsibly sourced"?

56% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Mowi (but don't worry, it's certified as "farmed responsibly" by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council)!

Over 80% Mortality at The Scottish Salmon Company!!!

Dead in the Water - Scottish Salmon's Mortality Mountain Piles Ever Higher in 2021!

Mass Mortalities - 66% in one month at The Scottish Salmon Company on the Isle of Gigha!

STV News: "Thousands of rotting salmon ‘stink out’ village after mass death at farm"

X-Rated Video: 90% Mortality at The Faroese/Norwegian 'Scottish' Salmon Company?!

"The shocking death rates on Scotland's salmon farms revealed"

2020: The Year of Diseased Scottish Salmon - 27,000 Tonnes of Dead Fish, the Worst On Record!

Update: Mortality Rate Over 36% At RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon!

Revealed: Burned, Buried & Ensiled Scottish Salmon 

Update: 25 Million Mass Mortalities on Scottish Salmon Farms

54 Million Farmed Fish Died in Norway in 2021 - How Many Farmed Salmon Died in Scotland?

Revealed: 30+ Million Dead Scottish Salmon Since 2017 - over 8 million morts reported last year & over half a million in first two weeks of 2022!!

52 million deaths in Norway - how many millions died on Scottish salmon farms in 2020?

The Case Against Scottish Salmon - An Update on Diseases & Mass Mortalities!

2.2 Million Missing Mortalities at Scottish Sea Farms?

Alexa, how many salmon die each year on Scottish salmon farms? 42 million* (but we don't know for sure as the answer is deemed "commercially damaging")!

Over One Million Morts for Scottish Salmon in September 2020!

Survival of the Unhealthiest Scottish Salmon - New data reveals shocking mortality rates!

Dead in the Water - New Data Reveals Mass Mortalities & Disease on Scottish Salmon Farms

The Ferret: "Farmed salmon deaths from disease reach record high"

The Killing Farms - Scottish Salmon's Horror Story Continues!

Solving Scottish Salmon's Multi-Million Mortality Problem

Scottish Salmon's Mort Mountain Leaps Over 10 Million - FOI reveals 2.3 million dead salmon at Marine Harvest farms in 2017

A disgrace: Ten million salmon thrown away by fish farm industry in last year alone

Death rate at salmon farms doubles to 20m fish a year

Scottish watchdog labelled ‘lapdog’ after agreeing to keep fish farm deaths secret

 

 

Exclusive: Scamon Scotland fleshes out the alarming death rates on fish farms using data published by @ScotlandSalmon @ScottishEPA & @marinescotland
Please stop greenwashing "responsibly sourced" Scottish salmon! @rspcaassured @ASC_aqua @SoilAssociation https://t.co/OAfRglN8zB pic.twitter.com/CM8g4dd5s9

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 26, 2022

 

 

 

 

 

 

So whether you honestly believe there were 13 million mortalities on salmon farms last year - or perhaps nearly 50 million (in both freshwater and seawater) - it is surely time that SEPA, the Scottish Government and Scottish Parliament forced full disclosure by the salmon farming industry with respect to the scale of mortalities?  The Norwegian Government publishes annual data on mortalities on salmon farms - detailed as 54 million in 2021 - so why the secrecy in Scotland? 

 

"This week, @vetinst_no presented its report on fish health. It was a saddening read. What else can you say about a report that establishes 54 million fish die annually in our fish farms" @Arne_O_Holm @HighNorthNews https://t.co/Jb9onIgXF7
How many farmed salmon die in Scotland? pic.twitter.com/9whW7ze2i6

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) March 11, 2022

 

 

Censored: Salmon farmers in Scotland refuse to publish numbers of deaths as disclosure is "commercially damaging" https://t.co/FiaGuR3KoG
Yet Norway published 2020 data detailing 52 million deaths - why the double standard when Norway owns 80% of 'Scottish' salmon? @ScottishEPA pic.twitter.com/S6d45qnsTx

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) March 11, 2021

 

 

 

$camon $cotland today (30 September 2022) wrote to the Scottish Parliament's Rural Affairs, Islands and Natural Environment Committee demanding the disclosure of mortality numbers on salmon farms (download the letter as a PDF online here).  

 

 

"Force the salmon farming industry to publish mortality numbers" @SP_RuralAffairs @ScotlandSalmon @ScottishEPA @marinescotland
"It is not difficult to see why the salmon farming industry do not want the data disclosed to the public" @TavishScott @ArianeBurgessHI @fincarson pic.twitter.com/Cb7pub2QDy

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 30, 2022

 

 

As Tavish Scott so presciently told Holyrood magazine in November 2020: "We must confront the arguments where they lack fact". 

 

"We must confront the arguments where they lack fact" says @tavishscott @HolyroodDaily https://t.co/iIpHiZNRyE
How many mortalities does @SSPOsays report each year?
Fact - zero (disclosure would be "commercially damaging") @ScottishEPA @TerryAHearn https://t.co/RJ4HGLLBWx pic.twitter.com/0LmEKS5zRA

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) December 1, 2020

 

 

 

Here's a letter sent to The Herald On Sunday:

 

From: Don Staniford <[email protected]>
Date: Fri, Sep 30, 2022 at 10:04 AM
Subject: Letter to The Herald On Sunday
To: <[email protected]>
Cc: Martin Williams <[email protected]>

Re: Inquiry into salmon farming demanded after "sickening" levels of fish deaths (Herald On Sunday, 25 September 2022)

 

Whilst your continued coverage of the disease-ridden salmon farming industry is welcomed, $camon $cotland feels that readers were misled when the alarming number of mortalities on salmon farms last year was presented as fact. 

 

Basic math ratios based on previously published data on mortality numbers point to a figure of between 19.7 million and 22 million dead farmed salmon in 2021 not the "nearly 13 million" figure reported by The Herald On Sunday. 

 

 

 

The fact is that since 2012 there has been no data on mortality numbers published.  As Rob Edwards reported in The Sunday Herald back in October 2013 the publication of data on mortality numbers stopped following lobbying by the salmon farming industry who claimed that disclosure would be 'commercially damaging'. 

 

Nor does the estimate of 13 million mortalities on salmon farms in Scotland last year include mortalities in freshwater hatcheries and smolt farms.  The true figure of mortalities throughout the life-cycle of a farmed salmon - from hatch to 'catch' - could be close to 50 million. 

 

Whatever the real number of mortalities on salmon farms - and until Salmon Scotland publishes the data the public will not know - it is clear that the death rate inside disease-ridden cages has reached record levels with some sites reporting mortality rates in excess of 80%. 

 

 

 

If four out of every five cows or sheep in a field were dying the public would be outraged.  The call by Edward Mountain MSP - as former convenor of the Scottish Parliament's Rural Committee - for a further inquiry into salmon farming must therefore be supported as a matter of urgency.   

 

 

Don Staniford

 

Director, $camon $cotland

 

 

Tel: 07771 541826

 

 

 

If four out of every five cows or sheep in a field were dying the public would be outraged - why are people happy to buy salmon from farms with 80% mortality? https://t.co/CM9bTCxmdI pic.twitter.com/GRftRi1YhD

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 30, 2022

 

Whatever the real number of mortalities on salmon farms - and until @ScotlandSalmon publishes the data the public will not know - it is clear that the death rate inside disease-ridden cages has reached record levels with some sites reporting mortality rates in excess of 80% pic.twitter.com/PYarGnPNkw

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) October 1, 2022

 

 

Letter to Scottish Parliament re. farmed salmon mortalities "increasing at an alarming rate" from former convenor of Rural Committee

 

Exclusive: here's a letter to the Scottish Parliament re. farmed salmon mortalities "increasing at an alarming rate" from former convenor of Rural Committee https://t.co/bpKLDPJvEo @1edmountain @fincarson @SP_RuralAffairs @ScotParl @LabourMercedes @ArianeBurgessHI @Rachael2Win pic.twitter.com/xMLHr7eDWd

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 28, 2022

 

Here's a letter from Edward Mountain MSP to the Scottish Parliament's rural committee:

 

 

 

Download as a PDF online here

 

 

 

 

The Herald On Sunday reported (25 September 2022):

 

Calls are being made for a fresh inquiry as "alarming" figures show the amount of fish destroyed by diseases & other issues is even higher than "stomach-churning" levels that led to calls for a moratorium on salmon farming https://t.co/Lcx9OErAR9 @ScotlandSalmon @ScotParl

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 25, 2022

 

 

 

 

$camon $cotland reported (26 September 2022):

 

Exclusive: Scamon Scotland fleshes out the alarming death rates on fish farms using data published by @ScotlandSalmon @ScottishEPA & @marinescotland
Please stop greenwashing "responsibly sourced" Scottish salmon! @rspcaassured @ASC_aqua @SoilAssociation https://t.co/OAfRglN8zB pic.twitter.com/CM8g4dd5s9

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 26, 2022

 

 

In 2013 the salmon farming industry @ScotlandSalmon successfully lobbied @ScottishEPA not to publish data on the number of dead farmed salmon arguing that disclosure would be 'commercially damaging' https://t.co/knvOj5ostZ @robedwards53
A decade later, mortalities have trebled! pic.twitter.com/IcPAqC5vsA

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 26, 2022

 

 

 

Read more via:

Photos Expose Ongoing Welfare Abuse at RSPCA Assured Salmon Farms!

Press Release: "Year of the Dead Salmon: Scottish Salmon Plagued by Mass Mortality Problems"

Media Backgrounder: Year of the Dead Salmon - Bakkafrost Scotland is the King of Death!

Herald On Sunday: "Inquiry into salmon farming demanded after "sickening" levels of fish deaths"

Fake News? Over 50% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon Farms - how can supermarkets advertise it as "responsibly sourced"?

56% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Mowi (but don't worry, it's certified as "farmed responsibly" by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council)!

Over 80% Mortality at The Scottish Salmon Company!!!

Dead in the Water - Scottish Salmon's Mortality Mountain Piles Ever Higher in 2021!

Mass Mortalities - 66% in one month at The Scottish Salmon Company on the Isle of Gigha!

STV News: "Thousands of rotting salmon ‘stink out’ village after mass death at farm"

X-Rated Video: 90% Mortality at The Faroese/Norwegian 'Scottish' Salmon Company?!

"The shocking death rates on Scotland's salmon farms revealed"

2020: The Year of Diseased Scottish Salmon - 27,000 Tonnes of Dead Fish, the Worst On Record!

Update: Mortality Rate Over 36% At RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon!

Revealed: Burned, Buried & Ensiled Scottish Salmon 

Update: 25 Million Mass Mortalities on Scottish Salmon Farms

52 million deaths in Norway - how many millions died on Scottish salmon farms in 2020?

The Case Against Scottish Salmon - An Update on Diseases & Mass Mortalities!

2.2 Million Missing Mortalities at Scottish Sea Farms?

Alexa, how many salmon die each year on Scottish salmon farms? 42 million* (but we don't know for sure as the answer is deemed "commercially damaging")!

Over One Million Morts for Scottish Salmon in September 2020!

Survival of the Unhealthiest Scottish Salmon - New data reveals shocking mortality rates!

Dead in the Water - New Data Reveals Mass Mortalities & Disease on Scottish Salmon Farms

The Ferret: "Farmed salmon deaths from disease reach record high"

The Killing Farms - Scottish Salmon's Horror Story Continues!

Solving Scottish Salmon's Multi-Million Mortality Problem

Scottish watchdog labelled ‘lapdog’ after agreeing to keep fish farm deaths secret

 

 

Alexa, how many salmon die each year on Scottish salmon farms? 42 million* https://t.co/jRQzhheju6
Sadly we don't know for sure as the answer is deemed "commercially damaging" by @sspo!
Will @ScottishEPA & @marinescotland force disclosure? @salmon_scottish @rspcaassured pic.twitter.com/fua9nkM6g3

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 11, 2020

 

 

 

Farmed salmon mortalities in Scotland: A model in sustainability?
Dead salmon, "cleaner fish" killed at harvest, krill from the Antarctic shipped to Norway, pesticides to treat salmon for sea lice. #salmon #notsustainable @CBC @bbcworld @WildFishCons @guardian @OrcaSOS pic.twitter.com/yFMBEaGVmi

— ProtectOurShore (@ProtectOurShore) September 26, 2022

 

 

 

 

Farmed salmon mortalities hit a high of 29,000 tonnes last year.

That’s unacceptable and the Scottish Government must do far more with the industry to reduce mortalities. pic.twitter.com/LEsG5zwX7g

— Edward Mountain (@1edmountain) January 25, 2023

 

Photos Expose Ongoing Welfare Abuse at RSPCA Assured Salmon Farms!

 

EXPOSED: Photos of diseased salmon taken by @scotgov health inspectors at visits to farms - how can such abuse be marketed as "responsible" & 'welfare-friendly'? @rspcaassured @ScotlandSalmon @SoilAssociation @SoilAssocScot @ASC_aqua @scotgp @ciwf @onekindtweet @Animallawyersuk pic.twitter.com/NEFMuk504z

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 28, 2022

 

'The camera never lies', so the saying goes.  This is especially pertinent in the context of 'Scottish' salmon farming whose lawyers fought to prevent damning photos being published arguing that disclosure would cause 'reputational damage'.  Thankfully, in 2018 the Scottish Government rejected pleas by Mowi, The Scottish Salmon Company (renamed Bakkafrost Scotland in June 2022) and Scottish Sea Farms who railed against the "irresponsible use of photos" which they argued could cause "unnecessary confusion" in the mind of consumers (i.e. if people knew the truth then they would stop buying Scottish salmon). 

 

 

In 2018, lawyers representing fish farms tried to stop publication of photos @rspcaassured salmon arguing disclosure would cause "reputational damage" @scotseafarms @MowiScotlandLtd @ScotlandSalmon @Folketrygdfond @LeroySeafood
Thankfully @scotgov told the $almafia to fish off! pic.twitter.com/e1Lj7mIcNb

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 28, 2022

 

A Freedom of Information ruling by the Scottish Government in October 2019 opened the floodgates to gruesome photos of welfare abuse and disease inside salmon farms being published by the Fish Health Inspectorate (note that ca. 70% of salmon farming production in Scotland is certified as 'welfare-friendly' via RSPCA Assured with all salmon farming companies in Scotland except Organic Sea Harvest signed up to the RSPCA Assured scheme which rakes in over £500,000 per year for the RSPCA; ca. 15% certified as "farmed responsibly" via the Aquaculture Stewardship Council and ca. 5% certified as 'organic' via the Soil Association).

 

 

 

 

 

 

The Scottish Government's Fish Health Inspectorate now routinely publishes 'Case Information' - including photos of diseased Scottish salmon - online here (note that not every site inspection includes photos and publication may take up to six months after the inspection): 

 

 

 

 

Here's photos of disease-ridden farmed salmon from RSPCA Assured Bakkafrost Scotland (called The Scottish Salmon Company until June 2022) in Loch Roag at Taranaish - sourced from a Scottish Government inspection conducted in December 2021 (the Fish Health Inspectorate reported salmon gill poxvirus, epitheliocystis, Infectious Pancreatic Necrosis, and Neoparamoeba perurans, the causative agent of Amoebic Gill Disease):

 

 

 

Here's photos of disease-ridden farmed salmon from Hendrix/Landcatch's Ormsary Broodstock Unit - sourced from a Fish Health Inspectorate visit conducted in November 2021 (a positive case of Infectious Salmon Anaemia was reported along with Infectious Pancreatic Necrosis, epitheliocystis and amoebic gill disease): 

 

 

Photos of Landcatch's disease-ridden salmon farm at Ormsary - post mortem inspection reported proliferative branchitis, Amoebic Gill Disease, epitheliocystis, Infectious Pancreatic Necrosis virus & Infectious Salmon Anaemia virus @HGSalmonUK @BetterBreeding @ScotlandSalmon #ISA pic.twitter.com/rIB7Nkh1l0

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 28, 2022

 

 

Infectious Salmon Anaemia Reported at Landcatch’s Ormsary Hatchery in November – was ISA imported via infected salmon eggs (ova) from Iceland? @WeAreBenchmark @HGSalmonUK @BetterBreeding @marinescotland @ScotlandSalmon @obantimes @argyllshiread @salmon_scottish @LochDuartSalmon pic.twitter.com/dh5CD9J5tg

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) January 10, 2022

 

 

 

Hendrix/Landcatch supplies 'organic' salmon for Organic Sea Harvest and also supplies smolts to Loch Duart, Scottish Sea Farms and Bakkafrost Scotland (The Scottish Salmon Company) via eggs imported from Iceland, Ireland and Norway. 

 

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

 

 

 

Here's photos of disease-ridden farmed salmon from RSPCA Assured Loch Duart in the Sound of Harris - sourced from a Scottish Government inspection conducted in October 2021 (the Fish Health Inspectorate reported positive tests for Salmon Gill Poxvirus, proliferative gill pathology, evidence of amoebic gill disease and epitheliocystis): 

 

 

Mmm - yummy looking "unrivalled" Scottish salmon "With a natural as possible diet & space to swim, each fish grows fitter & healthier every day" claims @LochDuartSalmon https://t.co/OxXxkqxHPh
Err...except unhealthy fish from farms with mortality rates over 25%! @ScotlandSalmon pic.twitter.com/f50gytF6TQ

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 28, 2022

 

 

Here's photos of disease-ridden farmed rainbow trout from Kames Hatchery in Kilmelford from a Scottish Government inspection conducted in October 2021:

 

 

 

 

Last month (23 August 2022), $camon $cotland exposed how Mowi's Greanem (Grey Horse Outer) salmon farm - certified as "responsibly sourced" via RSPCA Assured and the Aquaculture Stewardship Council - reported a cumulative mortality rate of 56%.

 

How can 56% mortality (i.e. over half the fish dying) be marketed as "responsibly farmed" & "responsibly sourced" @rspcaassured @ASC_aqua @Tesco @sainsburys @MowiScotlandLtd ? https://t.co/PuckNO9qq9 @ASA_UK @ClientEarth @SSC_seafood @LidlGB @AldiUK @ScotlandSalmon #Greenwash pic.twitter.com/h9bILNMmWR

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 23, 2022

 

 

An inspection report published by the Scottish Government earlier this year (relating to an inspection in October 2021) included photos of disease-ridden fish at Mowi's Greanem (Grey Horse Outer) salmon farm:

 

 

 

 

$camon $cotland reported last month (24 August 2022):

 

Photo Exclusive: here's why @MowiScotlandLtd want activists to stay away from their disease-ridden feedlots. Shame on @rspcaassured @ASC_aqua @sainsburys @Tesco @LidlGB @AldiUK @ScotlandSalmon for promoting Mowi's Scottish salmon as "responsibly sourced"! https://t.co/P09o4N3rzy pic.twitter.com/nJQYLFQavy

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 24, 2022

 

 

The Fish Health Inspectorate report for Mowi's RSPCA Assured Linnhe salmon farm included photos (which Scottish Salmon Watch forced the Scottish Government to publish via Freedom of Information despite objections from Mowi, Scottish Sea Farms and The Scottish Salmon Company):

 

 

Mowi: "the risk of people turning away from a healthy food such as salmon as a reaction to irresponsible use of photos for the sole purpose of creating fear in the consumer, is a risk to public health" https://t.co/u9Fk2kOkxz @MowiScotlandLtd @marinescotland @FergusEwingMSP pic.twitter.com/M3AyD3jMTm

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) October 24, 2019

 

 

 

$camon $cotland reported last month (23 August 2022):

 

Organic Scamon: here's what Cooke Aquaculture's salmon from Westray on Orkney look like (as inspected by @marinescotland in May) @The_Orcadian @bbcorkney @OrkneyCouncil
Why does the @SoilAssociation certify salmon farms as 'organic'? @SoilAssocScot @CookeScotland @cookeseafood pic.twitter.com/7FTcnt01zG

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 24, 2022

 

 

In what warped world can these fish be truly marketed as "responsibly farmed" and "responsibly sourced"?

 

 

Crook err I mean Cooke claim "various campaigners promote false information about the UK’s number one food export, farm-raised Scottish salmon" https://t.co/2YYUT4dw23
You mean this 'Case Information' @marinescotland showing welfare abuse at 'organic' @CookeScotland off Westray? pic.twitter.com/DDetOlvTiN

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 9, 2022

 

 

 

Scottish Salmon Watch reported in January 2022:

 

Fresh Scottish Salmon anyone? Here's freshly published photos of disease-ridden fish farmed @salmon_scottish off Skye & the Isle of Gigha @marinescotland
Please boycott Scottish salmon! @Folketrygdfond @waitrose @coopuk @coopukpress @ScotlandSalmon https://t.co/WK0SjATflz pic.twitter.com/MIBNEityBk

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) January 12, 2022

 

 

 

 

Scottish Salmon never tasted good - but you wouldn't serve these poor creatures @salmon_scottish to your cat! These photos published @scotgov show why people should boycott @ScotlandSalmon! @waitrose @coopuk @asda @Morrisons @Tesco @sainsburys @AldiUK @LidlGB @marksandspencer pic.twitter.com/PtmKBgjuPi

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) January 12, 2022

 

 

 

In August 2021, the Scottish Government published photos of farmed salmon infected with Infectious Salmon Anaemia virus and other disease problems at an RSPCA certified salmon farm operated by Scottish Sea Farms in Loch Spelve:

 

 

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

 

 

 

Scottish Salmon Watch reported in November 2020:

 

Photos slipped out last month @marinescotland provide yet more damning evidence of welfare abuse on salmon farms - please boycott Scottish salmon! https://t.co/bp2h3Rylag @salmon_scottish @Try_Lochlander @Folketrygdfond @GreenerScotland @scotgp @coopuk @rspcaassured @SSPCA_Mike pic.twitter.com/Sngg29WYTp

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 4, 2020

 

 

 

Scottish Salmon Watch reported in May 2020:

 

RSPCA Assured Mowi Plagued by Mass Mortalities & Infectious Diseases https://t.co/vxZTjE37qA Boycott disease-ridden Scottish salmon treated with antibiotics @MowiScotlandLtd @rspcaassured @sainsburys @LidlGB @AldiUK Enteric Redmouth Disease (Yersiniosis) is like the Black Death! pic.twitter.com/Rry8Y5vFvq

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) May 27, 2020

 

 

 

 

Scottish Salmon Watch reported in April 2020:

 

Be Sure to Boycott RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon! https://t.co/61yIroIUBp Shocking new photos published of Mowi's disease-ridden North Shore feedlot in Loch Erisort @marinescotland @MowiScotlandLtd "visibly moribund fish" & "significant lice damage" @sainsburys @rspcaassured pic.twitter.com/gjLaeqpcFz

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) April 7, 2020

 

 

 

Scottish Salmon Watch published a dossier of photos - sourced from Scottish Government inspections forced out via Freedom of Information - in February 2020:

 

 

Edie Bowles @Animallawyersuk said the dossier, compiled by Don Staniford, a critic of salmon farming, indicated “systemic and obvious” pain & suffering that could justify legal action against @scotgov @MairiGougeon @SSPOsays https://t.co/ZuzAis8gEr @SundayTimesScot @ciwf @scotgp pic.twitter.com/RPVIAL3KlS

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) February 2, 2020

 

 

 

In January 2020, Scottish Salmon Watch published photos of welfare abuse in cleaner fish and in farmed salmon taken by Scottish Government inspectors at Mowi's Ardintoul salmon farm in Loch Alsh:

 

First official photos of lumpfish on salmon farms published by @marinescotland Infected with Aeromonas salmonicida (Furunculosis), Vibrio & Shewanella @MowiScotlandLtd https://t.co/qr0tO3BMVR 17,000 dead leading to treatment with antibiotic (Aquatet/Oxytetracycline) @APHAgovuk pic.twitter.com/nYXDBnWfkx

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) January 27, 2020

 

 

Moribund Mowi: "At the time of the visit moribund fish & some floating mortalities were observed in all cages" @marinescotland https://t.co/qr0tO3BMVR 73,459 morts (3,221 due to concussions from increased Caligus burdens), Salmon Gill Poxvirus, AGD & Anaemia @MowiScotlandLtd pic.twitter.com/GulKfO5p5z

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) January 27, 2020

 

 

 

 

Here's photos leaked by a whistleblower in 2018 working for The Scottish Salmon Company at their facility at Toward near Dunoon in Argyll (the whistleblower was sick to the stomach at their poor welfare and hygiene standards):

 

 

 

 

In November 2018, a whistleblower leaked photos of flayed alive salmon farmed by Mowi in Kilbrannan Sound:

 

 

 

 

A snapshot into 'Waste Management' in Scottish salmon farming (where ca. 15 million fish die each year at a mortality rate of 20-25%) https://t.co/hyztwncvhO https://t.co/FZq0diz5Ei Including 300,000 skinned alive at Mowi's salmon farm at Carradale in Kilbrannan Sound pic.twitter.com/Hur4VyxVLy

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) June 12, 2020

 

 

 

Read more via:

Seaspiracy 2: Mowi's Disease & Welfare Nightmare in Loch Linnhe!

Cooke's Organic Scamon Exposed by Gruesome Photos from Orkney - RSPCA Assured Ouseness Oozes Welfare Abuse!

56% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Mowi (but don't worry, it's certified as "farmed responsibly" by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council)!

Scottish Salmon Exposed - Photos highlight the disease & welfare nightmare at The Scottish Salmon Company!

Photos of Welfare Abuse at The Scottish Salmon Company in Loch Carron (West Strome salmon farm)

The Camera Never Lies About Scottish Salmon!

RSPCA Assured Mowi Plagued by Mass Mortalities & Infectious Diseases on Skye

Be Sure to Boycott RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon - Shocking New Photos Published of Mowi's North Shore Feedlot in Loch Erisort!

Photo Dossier of Diseased, Deformed & Abused Scottish Salmon

Maaey day for the Scottish Salmon Company

Ground-truthing disease-ridden Scottish salmon

Mowi's Welfare Nightmare on Rum - "blind", "physical damage", "anorexic" & over 40,000 dead fish!

EXPOSED: Photo Disclosures Opens Floodgates to More Diseased & Deformed Scottish Salmon

Scottish Government rejects industry pleas on sick salmon photos

Mmmm Blind Scottish Salmon with Boils, Anyone?

Meet Pop-Eye the Scottish Salmon - Tortured by an Optilicer!

Cardiac Disease Arrests Mowi in Kingairloch

Salmon firms bid to block diseased photos

REVEALED: Legal Threats to Prevent Publication of Damning Photographs

FOI Dossier: Photographs of Diseased & Deformed Scottish Salmon - Scottish Government FOI disclosure despite legal threats from Scottish Sea Farms & The Scottish Salmon Company

Hard Evidence: Photos of Diseased & Deformed Scottish Salmon (August 2018)

FOI Disclosure 18-02235: Photos of Scottish Sea Farms

FOI Disclosure 18-01782: Photos of The Scottish Salmon Company and others

Horror photos of farmed salmon spark legal threat

EXPOSED: Gruesome Photos of Deformed & Diseased Scottish Salmon

Hard Evidence: Photos of Diseased & Deformed Scottish Salmon (June 2018)

 

 

Here's what Mowi's @rspcaassured salmon looked like after 300,000 died in the Beast from the East in 2018 at their Carradale farm (the same site hit yesterday by Storm Ellen) https://t.co/hyztwncvhO Skinless Scottish salmon anyone? @MowiScotlandLtd @sainsburys @LidlGB @AldiUK pic.twitter.com/xjf3JM20jG

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 21, 2020

 

 

 

Why does @rspcaassured certify 70% of Scottish salmon farms as welfare-friendly when there is systemic suffering & abuse? @RSPCA_official @RSPCA_Frontline @AnimalLawCon @Animal_Alliance @animalpharm @AnimalEquality @AnimalAid @media_ciwf @PETAUK @HSIUKorg https://t.co/ZuzAis8gEr pic.twitter.com/1rWDdk5Hsc

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) February 2, 2020

 

Press Release: "Year of the Dead Salmon: Scottish Salmon Plagued by Mass Mortality Problems"

 

Exclusive: Scamon Scotland fleshes out the alarming death rates on fish farms using data published by @ScotlandSalmon @ScottishEPA & @marinescotland
Please stop greenwashing "responsibly sourced" Scottish salmon! @rspcaassured @ASC_aqua @SoilAssociation https://t.co/OAfRglN8zB pic.twitter.com/CM8g4dd5s9

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 26, 2022

 

Download press release as a PDF via: Year of the Dead Salmon: Scottish Salmon Plagued by Mass Mortality Problems (26 September 2022)

 

 

 

 

Download press release as a PDF in full online here

 

 

 

 

Read more via: Media Backgrounder: Year of the Dead Salmon - Bakkafrost Scotland is the King of Death! (September 2022)

 

 

In 2013 the salmon farming industry @ScotlandSalmon successfully lobbied @ScottishEPA not to publish data on the number of dead farmed salmon arguing that disclosure would be 'commercially damaging' https://t.co/knvOj5ostZ @robedwards53
A decade later, mortalities have trebled! pic.twitter.com/IcPAqC5vsA

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 26, 2022

 

 

Named & Shamed: Here's Scottish salmon's 50%+ mortality club - sites where more than half the "responsibly sourced" fish died a cruel death! @rspcaassured @ASC_aqua @ScotlandSalmon @MowiScotlandLtd @Folketrygdfond @WesterRossSalmo @GriegShetland @LochDuartSalmon @TavishScott pic.twitter.com/6YJCwkoL2I

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 26, 2022

 

 

If you have any inside information please contact $camon $cotland online here

 

Calling all whistleblowers - please share tips, photos & videos detailing mass mortalities, infectious diseases, environmental pollution, illegal use of toxic chemicals & any other salmon farming problems @ScotlandSalmon @ScottishEPA @Ferguson_TPT https://t.co/GFtwHwbOrl pic.twitter.com/UvT3nRYfzb

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 25, 2022

 

 

 

 

More on mass mortalities at Scottish salmon farms via:

Media Backgrounder: Year of the Dead Salmon - Bakkafrost Scotland is the King of Death!

Herald On Sunday: "Inquiry into salmon farming demanded after "sickening" levels of fish deaths"

Fake News? Over 50% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon Farms - how can supermarkets advertise it as "responsibly sourced"?

MSPs steered away from disease-ridden Scottish salmon!

Cooke's Organic Scamon Exposed by Gruesome Photos from Orkney - RSPCA Assured Ouseness Oozes Welfare Abuse! 

56% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Mowi (but don't worry, it's certified as "farmed responsibly" by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council)!

Exposed: 10 Million Morts at RSPCA Assured Mowi Since 2019!

Revealed: 30+ Million Dead Scottish Salmon Since 2017 - over 8 million morts reported last year & over half a million in first two weeks of 2022!!

Charitable Warning: Mowi's Salmon Wagon is Hitting the Road Again - there's no such thing as a free farmed fish lunch!

Mowi's "Woes in Scotland" - Disease & Deaths Cause £5.6 Million Losses!

Over 80% Mortality at The Scottish Salmon Company!!!

ASC-Certified/Audited Mass Mortalities Pile Up at Lousy Mowi & Scottish Sea Farms!

New Mortality Data for Disease-Ridden Scottish Salmon - 700,000+ in the first two weeks of December!

Open letter to the ASC: Please cancel all certification of Mowi's toxic Scottish salmon!

Mowi's 'Host' With the Most....Toxic Chemicals & Antibiotics (certified as "responsibly farmed" by the ASC)!

ASC cancel Mowi certifications due to exceedances of antibiotics use, escape & "administrative reasons"!

Mass mortalities at ASC-certified Mowi!

Dead in the Water - Scottish Salmon's Mortality Mountain Piles Ever Higher in 2021!

Mass Mortalities - 66% in one month at The Scottish Salmon Company on the Isle of Gigha!

Lousy 'Scottish' Salmon - the most lice-infested salmon farms named & shamed!

Irresponsible Scottish Salmon Exposed: 'Scotland's Aquaculture' Publishes Data on Toxic Chemicals Use, Morts & Biomass Breaches

STV News: "Thousands of rotting salmon ‘stink out’ village after mass death at farm"

X-Rated Video: 90% Mortality at The Faroese/Norwegian 'Scottish' Salmon Company?!

Video Nasties of Dead Farmed Salmon Pile Up All Over the World!

Videos of Mort Disposal by The Scottish Salmon Company - like a serial killer disposing of dead bodies before the police arrive!

Demand for moratorium on new fish farms after mortality rates revealed

"The shocking death rates on Scotland's salmon farms revealed"

Rest Assured - the RSPCA has been captured, co-opted & corrupted by the Salmafia

2020: The Year of Diseased Scottish Salmon - 27,000 Tonnes of Dead Fish, the Worst On Record!

Stop the Scottish Salmondemic - please avoid disease-ridden farmed salmon like the proverbial plague!

Taking the Fish - Illegal Salmon Dump Caught Taking Diseased Fish from the Mainland Despite 'Derogation'!

FOI Lifts Lid on the Stench of Scottish Salmon: Government Legal Department Target Illegal Dumping of Diseased Salmon

The Times: "Fish graveyard ‘severely hampers’ life for islanders, officials claim"

Update: Mortality Rate Over 36% At RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon!

Mowi's 'Healthy' RSPCA Assured & ASC-Certified Salmon Farm at Gorsten (as featured in Seaspiracy)

Netflix's 'Seaspiracy' Exposes Disease-Ridden Scottish Salmon – As Sponsored by the RSPCA & Aquaculture Stewardship Council!

Mowi Moves Goalposts on ASC Certification

ASC-Certified Scottish Salmon Dead in the Water!

Anyone for ASC-Certified Scottish Salmon Doused in Carcinogenic Formaldehyde?

Revealed: Burned, Buried & Ensiled Scottish Salmon 

Update: 25 Million Mass Mortalities on Scottish Salmon Farms

52 million deaths in Norway - how many millions died on Scottish salmon farms in 2020?

The Case Against Scottish Salmon - An Update on Diseases & Mass Mortalities!

2.2 Million Missing Mortalities at Scottish Sea Farms?

Mass Mortalities Continue to Plague Scottish Salmon

Alexa, how many salmon die each year on Scottish salmon farms? 42 million* (but we don't know for sure as the answer is deemed "commercially damaging")!

Over One Million Morts for Scottish Salmon in September 2020!

Survival of the Unhealthiest Scottish Salmon - New data reveals shocking mortality rates!

Dead in the Water - New Data Reveals Mass Mortalities & Disease on Scottish Salmon Farms

The Ferret: "Farmed salmon deaths from disease reach record high"

The Killing Farms - Scottish Salmon's Horror Story Continues!

Solving Scottish Salmon's Multi-Million Mortality Problem

 

 

 

 

 

Alexa, how many salmon die each year on Scottish salmon farms? 42 million* https://t.co/jRQzhheju6
Sadly we don't know for sure as the answer is deemed "commercially damaging" by @sspo!
Will @ScottishEPA & @marinescotland force disclosure? @salmon_scottish @rspcaassured pic.twitter.com/fua9nkM6g3

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 11, 2020

 

 

 

Question @ScotlandSalmon - why are mortality rates so much higher at Bakkafrost (The Scottish Salmon Co) @Folketrygdfond & @WesterRossSalmo compared to @CookeScotland & @GriegShetland? https://t.co/Ju6L8xNZjw @LochDuartSalmon @fincarson @TavishScott @ArianeBurgessHI @scotgp pic.twitter.com/AxMzTuFLJ9

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 27, 2022

 

Media Backgrounder: Year of the Dead Salmon - Bakkafrost Scotland is the King of Death!

 

All hail Bakkafrost Scotland (formerly The Scottish Salmon Company) - Scottish salmon's King of Death! https://t.co/Ju6L8xNZjw
How can 82.1% mortality (that's 4 in every 5 fish dying a cruel death) be branded "responsibly sourced"? @rspcaassured @ScotlandSalmon @Folketrygdfond pic.twitter.com/zc4OuDlw2x

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 26, 2022

 

 

Media Backgrounder: Year of the Dead Salmon - Bakkafrost Scotland is the King of Death! (September 2022)

 

 

 

Question @ScotlandSalmon - why are mortality rates so much higher at Bakkafrost (The Scottish Salmon Co) @Folketrygdfond & @WesterRossSalmo compared to @CookeScotland & @GriegShetland? https://t.co/Ju6L8xNZjw @LochDuartSalmon @fincarson @TavishScott @ArianeBurgessHI @scotgp pic.twitter.com/AxMzTuFLJ9

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 27, 2022

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Bakkafrost Scotland (formerly the Scottish Salmon Company) scoops two top awards at the Scotland Food & Drink Awards 2022 @scotfooddrink @ScotlandSalmon @Folketrygdfond https://t.co/6OgxMLdkt3
How can you reward such intollerable cruelty? @rspcaassured @ciwf @onekindtweet pic.twitter.com/5UczIydimu

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 30, 2022

 

 

 

EXPOSED: Mowi's Mortality Nightmare - 59.5% death rate @rspcaassured Loch Greshornish & 55.9% death rate @ASC_aqua Greanem (Grey Horse Outer) @ScotlandSalmon https://t.co/OAfRglN8zB
How can Mowi's salmon be marketed as "responsibly sourced"? @sainsburys @Tesco @ASA_UK #Scamon pic.twitter.com/0bshm1oXbX

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 26, 2022

 

 

 

Lies, Damned Lies & Scottish Salmon: When @scotseafarms claim 90% fish survival & 100% @rspcaassured https://t.co/DevAkkEnYh
...What they fail to mention is 40%+ mortality in Kishorn, Lismore, Spelve & Nevis @ScotlandSalmon @marksandspencer @Ecohustler https://t.co/Ju6L8xNZjw pic.twitter.com/xiKHtNkkwJ

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 27, 2022

 

 

 

 

 

Wester Ross claim to grow salmon "second to none" with "unparalleled stewardship" https://t.co/ML7Rwd9WEk
Judged by their high mortality rates @WesterRossSalmo they are certainly up there with the worst of the worst! @ScotlandSalmon @MowiScotlandLtd @TavishScott pic.twitter.com/ETesWH0Spy

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 27, 2022

 

 

Loch Duart's marketing slogan is "unrivalled Scottish salmon" (it used to be "the Sustainable Salmon Company" but that was dropped after @ASA_UK invervention) - 50.3% mortality @rspcaassured in the Sound of Harris beats most of their rivals for sure! @ScotlandSalmon @RSPCAChris pic.twitter.com/YKdu04E3Dg

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 27, 2022

 

Best of the Worst: Congratulations @CookeScotland for the lowest mortality rate of all @rspcaassured salmon companies @ScotlandSalmon
An average cumulative mortality of 9.9% is much lower than 39.8% at Bakkafrost but some sites have still reported 25%+ mortality! @CookeSeafood pic.twitter.com/izHFI0qkev

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 27, 2022

 

Download media backgrounder in full as a PDF online here

 

 

 

 

In what world can a food product which suffers 50%+ mortality be marketed as "responsibly sourced" & "farmed responsibly"? Shame on supermarkets and certifiers for greenwashing disease-ridden toxic Scottish salmon! @ASA_UK @CMAgovUK @ScotlandSalmon @rspcaassured @MowiScotlandLtd pic.twitter.com/NgULQn8VmS

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 9, 2022

 

 

Fake News @ScotlandSalmon? - 59.5% mortality @MowiScotlandLtd in Loch Greshornish @rspcaassured; 57.8% at Bakkafrost's Greanamul salmon farm @Folketrygdfond & 50% death rate at Mowi's @ASC_aqua Camus Glas
How is half the fish dying "responsible"? @_KateForbes @Ianblackford_MP pic.twitter.com/2yIh1C5oon

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 9, 2022

 

 

Just a thought - why don't MSPs visit salmon farms with mortality & disease problems? @ScotlandSalmon https://t.co/kjNDyAMgKa
If over half the livestock in a field were dying then the public would be outraged! @SP_NetZero @ArianeBurgessHI @fincarson @jenni_minto @LabourMercedes https://t.co/im6gT6DCpV pic.twitter.com/McYDxohAjR

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

 

 

REVEALED: Mortality rates at feedlots across Scotland are leaping like a lice-infested salmon - with a staggering 55.9% (i.e. more than half of the fish dying) @MowiScotlandLtd @rspcaassured @ASC_aqua Greanem in North Uist https://t.co/kjNDyAMgKa @ScotlandSalmon @tavishscott pic.twitter.com/4893yS4LQ2

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 23, 2022

 

 

Breaking News: 82.1% mortality rate (i.e. four out of every five fish dying) @salmon_scottish in Druimyeon Bay; 66% (i.e. two out of every three fish dying) at Vacasay on Lewis & 50% mortality @LochDuartSalmon in the Sound of Harris @ScotlandSalmon https://t.co/kjNDyAMgKa pic.twitter.com/l2umcA571d

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) February 15, 2022

 

 

 

Salmon Scotland reveals a staggering monthly mortality rate of 66% (that's two out of every three salmon dying) @salmon_scottish in Druimyeon Bay on the Isle of Gigha in October 2021 with 49.4% dying in one month at Vacasay in Loch Roag! @ScotlandSalmon https://t.co/rKHGuzMb37 pic.twitter.com/NwICGovMby

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) December 10, 2021

 

 

 

Named & Shamed @ScotlandSalmon - the salmon farms with the worst mortality. Headed by @scotseafarms with 41.3% mortality in Loch Kishorn followed by 32.8% mortality in Loch Spelve (where ISA was reported in May) & @salmon_scottish & @LochDuartSalmon sites https://t.co/rKHGuzMb37 pic.twitter.com/Atboh6H6ds

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) December 10, 2021

 

 

 

Read more via:

Herald On Sunday: "Inquiry into salmon farming demanded after "sickening" levels of fish deaths"

Fake News? Over 50% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon Farms - how can supermarkets advertise it as "responsibly sourced"?

MSPs steered away from disease-ridden Scottish salmon!

Cooke's Organic Scamon Exposed by Gruesome Photos from Orkney - RSPCA Assured Ouseness Oozes Welfare Abuse! 

56% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Mowi (but don't worry, it's certified as "farmed responsibly" by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council)!

Exposed: 10 Million Morts at RSPCA Assured Mowi Since 2019!

Revealed: 30+ Million Dead Scottish Salmon Since 2017 - over 8 million morts reported last year & over half a million in first two weeks of 2022!!

Charitable Warning: Mowi's Salmon Wagon is Hitting the Road Again - there's no such thing as a free farmed fish lunch!

Mowi's "Woes in Scotland" - Disease & Deaths Cause £5.6 Million Losses!

Over 80% Mortality at The Scottish Salmon Company!!!

ASC-Certified/Audited Mass Mortalities Pile Up at Lousy Mowi & Scottish Sea Farms!

New Mortality Data for Disease-Ridden Scottish Salmon - 700,000+ in the first two weeks of December!

Open letter to the ASC: Please cancel all certification of Mowi's toxic Scottish salmon!

Mowi's 'Host' With the Most....Toxic Chemicals & Antibiotics (certified as "responsibly farmed" by the ASC)!

ASC cancel Mowi certifications due to exceedances of antibiotics use, escape & "administrative reasons"!

Mass mortalities at ASC-certified Mowi!

Dead in the Water - Scottish Salmon's Mortality Mountain Piles Ever Higher in 2021!

Mass Mortalities - 66% in one month at The Scottish Salmon Company on the Isle of Gigha!

Lousy 'Scottish' Salmon - the most lice-infested salmon farms named & shamed!

Irresponsible Scottish Salmon Exposed: 'Scotland's Aquaculture' Publishes Data on Toxic Chemicals Use, Morts & Biomass Breaches

STV News: "Thousands of rotting salmon ‘stink out’ village after mass death at farm"

X-Rated Video: 90% Mortality at The Faroese/Norwegian 'Scottish' Salmon Company?!

Video Nasties of Dead Farmed Salmon Pile Up All Over the World!

Videos of Mort Disposal by The Scottish Salmon Company - like a serial killer disposing of dead bodies before the police arrive!

Demand for moratorium on new fish farms after mortality rates revealed

"The shocking death rates on Scotland's salmon farms revealed"

Rest Assured - the RSPCA has been captured, co-opted & corrupted by the Salmafia

2020: The Year of Diseased Scottish Salmon - 27,000 Tonnes of Dead Fish, the Worst On Record!

Stop the Scottish Salmondemic - please avoid disease-ridden farmed salmon like the proverbial plague!

Taking the Fish - Illegal Salmon Dump Caught Taking Diseased Fish from the Mainland Despite 'Derogation'!

FOI Lifts Lid on the Stench of Scottish Salmon: Government Legal Department Target Illegal Dumping of Diseased Salmon

The Times: "Fish graveyard ‘severely hampers’ life for islanders, officials claim"

Update: Mortality Rate Over 36% At RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon!

Mowi's 'Healthy' RSPCA Assured & ASC-Certified Salmon Farm at Gorsten (as featured in Seaspiracy)

Netflix's 'Seaspiracy' Exposes Disease-Ridden Scottish Salmon – As Sponsored by the RSPCA & Aquaculture Stewardship Council!

Mowi Moves Goalposts on ASC Certification

ASC-Certified Scottish Salmon Dead in the Water!

Anyone for ASC-Certified Scottish Salmon Doused in Carcinogenic Formaldehyde?

Revealed: Burned, Buried & Ensiled Scottish Salmon 

Update: 25 Million Mass Mortalities on Scottish Salmon Farms

52 million deaths in Norway - how many millions died on Scottish salmon farms in 2020?

The Case Against Scottish Salmon - An Update on Diseases & Mass Mortalities!

2.2 Million Missing Mortalities at Scottish Sea Farms?

Mass Mortalities Continue to Plague Scottish Salmon

Alexa, how many salmon die each year on Scottish salmon farms? 42 million* (but we don't know for sure as the answer is deemed "commercially damaging")!

Over One Million Morts for Scottish Salmon in September 2020!

Survival of the Unhealthiest Scottish Salmon - New data reveals shocking mortality rates!

Dead in the Water - New Data Reveals Mass Mortalities & Disease on Scottish Salmon Farms

The Ferret: "Farmed salmon deaths from disease reach record high"

The Killing Farms - Scottish Salmon's Horror Story Continues!

Solving Scottish Salmon's Multi-Million Mortality Problem

 

 

Alexa, how many salmon die each year on Scottish salmon farms? 42 million* https://t.co/jRQzhheju6
Sadly we don't know for sure as the answer is deemed "commercially damaging" by @sspo!
Will @ScottishEPA & @marinescotland force disclosure? @salmon_scottish @rspcaassured pic.twitter.com/fua9nkM6g3

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 11, 2020

 

Herald On Sunday: "Inquiry into salmon farming demanded after "sickening" levels of fish deaths"

 

Calls are being made for a fresh inquiry as "alarming" figures show the amount of fish destroyed by diseases & other issues is even higher than "stomach-churning" levels that led to calls for a moratorium on salmon farming https://t.co/Lcx9OErAR9 @ScotlandSalmon @ScotParl

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 25, 2022

 

 

 

The Herald On Sunday reported (25 September 2022):

 

 

 

 

The Herald On Sunday: "One campaign group organiser said the latest mortality numbers were 'sickening'" @heraldscotland @1edmountain @fincarson @ScotParl @ScotlandSalmon @GraemeDeyMSP @ArianeBurgessHI @Liam4Orkney @SP_RuralAffairs @ScotSalmonTank @scotgp https://t.co/jiIhBBeo5j pic.twitter.com/aTyMb2mHQG

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 25, 2022

 

Former convenor of Scottish Parliament's rural committee makes a formal request to put salmon farming under close scrutiny. "The industry has been unable to address fish mortality rates which are increasing at an alarming rate" https://t.co/1GrexrxkYI @ScotParl @SP_RuralAffairs pic.twitter.com/vsDnDMiVU3

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 25, 2022

 

 

Here's the newspaper version (buy online via PressReader):

 

 

"Scottish salmon farmers criticised over 'alarming' number of fish killed by disease" reports The Herald On Sunday @Martin1Williams @heraldscotland @ScotlandSalmon @1edmountain @fincarson @ScotParl @SP_RuralAffairs @scotgp @MowiScotlandLtd @scotseafarms https://t.co/KDC38AeSWa pic.twitter.com/7KkvG53Sz2

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 25, 2022

 

 

 

 

 

Read more via:

Fake News? Over 50% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon Farms - how can supermarkets advertise it as "responsibly sourced"?

56% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Mowi (but don't worry, it's certified as "farmed responsibly" by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council)!

Over 80% Mortality at The Scottish Salmon Company!!!

Dead in the Water - Scottish Salmon's Mortality Mountain Piles Ever Higher in 2021!

Mass Mortalities - 66% in one month at The Scottish Salmon Company on the Isle of Gigha!

STV News: "Thousands of rotting salmon ‘stink out’ village after mass death at farm"

X-Rated Video: 90% Mortality at The Faroese/Norwegian 'Scottish' Salmon Company?!

"The shocking death rates on Scotland's salmon farms revealed"

2020: The Year of Diseased Scottish Salmon - 27,000 Tonnes of Dead Fish, the Worst On Record!

Update: Mortality Rate Over 36% At RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon!

Revealed: Burned, Buried & Ensiled Scottish Salmon 

Update: 25 Million Mass Mortalities on Scottish Salmon Farms

52 million deaths in Norway - how many millions died on Scottish salmon farms in 2020?

The Case Against Scottish Salmon - An Update on Diseases & Mass Mortalities!

2.2 Million Missing Mortalities at Scottish Sea Farms?

Alexa, how many salmon die each year on Scottish salmon farms? 42 million* (but we don't know for sure as the answer is deemed "commercially damaging")!

Over One Million Morts for Scottish Salmon in September 2020!

Survival of the Unhealthiest Scottish Salmon - New data reveals shocking mortality rates!

Dead in the Water - New Data Reveals Mass Mortalities & Disease on Scottish Salmon Farms

The Ferret: "Farmed salmon deaths from disease reach record high"

The Killing Farms - Scottish Salmon's Horror Story Continues!

Solving Scottish Salmon's Multi-Million Mortality Problem

Scottish watchdog labelled ‘lapdog’ after agreeing to keep fish farm deaths secret

 

 

REVEALED: Mortality rates at feedlots across Scotland are leaping like a lice-infested salmon - with a staggering 55.9% (i.e. more than half of the fish dying) @MowiScotlandLtd @rspcaassured @ASC_aqua Greanem in North Uist https://t.co/kjNDyAMgKa @ScotlandSalmon @tavishscott pic.twitter.com/4893yS4LQ2

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 23, 2022

 

Rubber-stamping Salmon Farm Approvals - 99% success rate!

 

71% of planning applications for salmon farms were not approved on time cries @TavishScott @ScotlandSalmon @SundayTimesScot https://t.co/xjpT5zMMLa
Yet over 99% of salmon farm applications are approved! @ScottishEPA @marinescotland https://t.co/NXNb9YnndX @robedwards53 pic.twitter.com/p01S1dBZEG

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 20, 2022

 

 

 

 

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency was late in approving 75% of applications moans @TavishScott @ScotlandSalmon @SundayTimesScot https://t.co/xjpT5zMMLa
Yet @ScottishEPA has rubber-stamped fish farms for decades with 99%+ approval! @scotgp @ArianeBurgessHI @MairiGougeon pic.twitter.com/SipY2Zvrim

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 20, 2022

 

"Disgrace for democracy...diabolical decision" decries No East Moclett Group on BBC Radio Orkney

 

"A disgrace for democracy....it's a diabolical decision" says Wendy Elves of Papa Westray's No East Moclett @bbcorkney "Everyone should be heard, everyone should count....the decision was made before we entered the room" @OrkneyCouncil @CookeScotland @cookeseafood @amy_may pic.twitter.com/htXviS828H

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 13, 2022

 

 

 

Wendy Elves of No East Moclett Group on Papa Westray pulled no punches when she spoke to BBC Radio Orkney about the approval of a new super-sized salmon farm in North Sound to be operated by Canadian giant Cooke Aquaculture:

 

 

 

 

Listen to the whole news segment on BBC Radio Orkney (starts at 24 minutes 30 seconds) online here

 

 

 

 

The blue lagoon of Holm Sound at low tide. In a South Westerly this will become the receptacle for the waste from 4000 tonnes of Salmon… Set the benchmark now for what we are about to lose.. @TheGAAIA @TheOpenSeas @ArianeBurgessHI pic.twitter.com/qbBZ0a49FJ

— Papay Ranger (@PapayRanger) September 15, 2022

 

Poor decision making yet again by @OrkneyIslandsCouncil. A death knell served to the Papay #Marine Protected Area by approving yet another fish farm to be built in an environmentally sensitive area. #plasticpollution #Seagrass #kelpforest #biodiversity #Ecosystemservices

— Dr Joanne Porter #WorkingToContract (@JoanneSPorter) September 8, 2022

 

 

Commenting after the shameful decision by Orkney Islands Council (8 September 2022) to grant approval to what will be Scotland's largest salmon farm off the island of Papa Westray, No East Moclett Group told $camon $cotland:

 

"No East Moclett Group is considering our options and will be filing an appeal subject to legal opinion. No means no - the population of Papay are fed up of having to fight off salmon farm developers from encroaching into their precious inshore waters" https://t.co/LgaNEHGVY1 pic.twitter.com/MqtdiCTJbe

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

 

"Granting approval without proper consultation or community support is an affront to local democracy. In ignoring blanket opposition, OIC and Cooke have treated islanders on Papa Westray with sheer contempt. No East Moclett Group is considering our options and will be filing an appeal subject to legal opinion. No means no - the population of Papay are fed up of having to fight off salmon farm developers from encroaching into their precious inshore waters. Enough is enough - allowing further expansion of 'organic' salmon farming in Orkney is a threat to the marine environment and tourism. Today's decision is just the beginning of our fight against Cooke and the council's unreasonable approval of Scotland's largest salmon farm".

 

 

"Granting approval without proper consultation or community support is an affront to local democracy. In ignoring blanket opposition, @OrkneyCouncil & @CookeScotland have treated islanders on Papay with sheer contempt" (No East Moclett Group)https://t.co/LgaNEHGo8t @amy_may pic.twitter.com/rFKLJqjJNm

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

 

"Enough is enough - allowing further expansion of 'organic' salmon farming in Orkney is a threat to the marine environment & tourism. This is just the beginning of our fight vs Cooke & the council's unreasonable approval of Scotland's largest salmon farm" https://t.co/LgaNEHGo8t pic.twitter.com/jdDjYNItj7

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 9, 2022

 

 

 

Read more via:

The Times: "Author Amy Liptrot joins island’s fish farm protest"

Protests Continue Vs Cooke's Salmon Farming Expansion Off Orkney - appeal vs East Moclett in the pipeline!

Mega Media Splash Vs Cooke's Super-Sized Salmon Farm Off Orkney - The Scotsman, The Herald, The National, Daily Telegraph & even Fish Farmer!!

Daily Telegraph: "Orkney locals 'disregarded' over huge salmon farm plan"

No Way To Salmon Farm Off Papa Westray

Photos: Papa Westray Protest Vs Cooke Makes Waves Off Orkney!

Too Many Cookes - community resistance on Orkney spoils super-sized salmon plan off Papa Westray

Cooke's Organic Scamon Exposed by Gruesome Photos from Orkney!

Organic Scamon - The Soil Association's List of Shame!

Organic Scamon: Ocado Challenged Over Mowi's 'Responsibly' Farmed Salmon - 100% Bullshit not 100% Scottish!

Scottish 'Organic' Scamon Leaps 181% - 4,462 tonnes to 12,528 tonnes from 2019 to 2020!

'Organic' Salmon Fit for the Queen? Not Even Fit for Her Dogs!

Net Tightens on Lawsuits vs 'Salmafia' - Cooke "unable to quash lawsuit over deceptive marketing practices"

Toxic Salmon Corrodes Soil Association's 'Organic' Principles

Scottish salmon is so not organic!

Organic Salmon Belongs in the Bin Not Your Shopping Basket!

Dutch TV slams "organic" salmon

EXPOSED: Scottish 'Organic' Scamon

Organic” farmed salmon – let’s get real

Shetland salmon packing factory leaks 'blood water' into sea

Cooke's Untreated Blood Water is "Gross" says SEPA - "Poor" processing plant pollutes Mid Yell Voe in Shetland

BBC Radio Shetland on Cooke's "untreated blood water" in Scotland

BBC News: "Shetland salmon packing factory leaks 'blood water' into sea"

More troubles for Cooke, with Scottish “blood water” claims

Environmental Event report re. "raw effluent" and overflowing "blood water" at Cooke's Mid Yell processing plant - January 2017

Organic Scamon - The Greenwashing of Toxic Farmed Salmon

Why organic salmon is causing a nasty smell

Concern over organic salmon farms

"Organically Farmed Salmon Is An Oxymoron" (The Organic Standard, 2001)

 

 

The battle goes on vs Cooke Aquaculture's 'organic' expansion off Orkney @RutterfordArt
"I find it particularly distressing that the planning process has been handled in such an underhand way. There has been a duplicitous lack of transparency" #Appeal @OrkneyCouncil @amy_may pic.twitter.com/X0ckYOw1cw

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

 

 

This decision on Orkney lies squarely at the door of @MairiGougeon @FergusEwingSNP @theSNP @scottishgreens who continue to push promote & support the unsustainable expansion of Open pen polluting salmon farming against public opinion. https://t.co/OYJ8FalEfb

— Howard Wood (@howardlwood) September 13, 2022

 

Fake News? Over 50% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon Farms - how can supermarkets advertise it as "responsibly sourced"?

 

Fake News @ScotlandSalmon? - 59.5% mortality @MowiScotlandLtd in Loch Greshornish @rspcaassured; 57.8% at Bakkafrost's Greanamul salmon farm @Folketrygdfond & 50% death rate at Mowi's @ASC_aqua Camus Glas
How is half the fish dying "responsible"? @_KateForbes @Ianblackford_MP pic.twitter.com/2yIh1C5oon

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 9, 2022

 

 

 

"Various campaigners promote false information about the UK’s number one food export, farm-raised Scottish salmon," claimed Cooke press spokesman Joel Richardson in yesterday's Fish Farming Expert (8 September 2022).  "They are misleading the public in an attempt to further their own agendas". 

 

Crook err I mean Cooke claim "various campaigners promote false information about the UK’s number one food export, farm-raised Scottish salmon" https://t.co/2YYUT4dw23
You mean this 'Case Information' @marinescotland showing welfare abuse at 'organic' @CookeScotland off Westray? pic.twitter.com/DDetOlvTiN

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 9, 2022

 

 

 

If the public - or indeed certification bodies and supermarkets guilty of greenwashing "responsibly sourced" Scottish salmon - want to groundtruth the 'false information' peddled by campaigners then the best (i.e. highlighting the worst) source of information is published by the salmon farming industry lobby group Salmon Scotland.  Here's the latest mortality data for salmon farms in Scotland in July 2022:

 

 

 

 

 

Scottish farmed salmon is clearly completely sustainable since only half of them die from disease and infestation before being harvested. This means we must triple the size of the industry in order to keep up a supply of undead fish for the general public. Obvious innit.

— Niall McKillop (@Badabrach) September 9, 2022

 

 

 

Here's mortality data published by Salmon Scotland for June 2022:

 

REVEALED: Mortality rates at feedlots across Scotland are leaping like a lice-infested salmon - with a staggering 55.9% (i.e. more than half of the fish dying) @MowiScotlandLtd @rspcaassured @ASC_aqua Greanem in North Uist https://t.co/kjNDyAMgKa @ScotlandSalmon @tavishscott pic.twitter.com/4893yS4LQ2

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 23, 2022

 

 

 

 

 

 

$camon Scotland reported in February 2022:

 

Breaking News: 82.1% mortality rate (i.e. four out of every five fish dying) @salmon_scottish in Druimyeon Bay; 66% (i.e. two out of every three fish dying) at Vacasay on Lewis & 50% mortality @LochDuartSalmon in the Sound of Harris @ScotlandSalmon https://t.co/kjNDyAMgKa pic.twitter.com/l2umcA571d

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) February 15, 2022

 

 

Data for mortalities during December 2021 (which includes cummulative mortality rates over the whole harvest cycle) have just been posted by Salmon Scotland - download online here

 

 

 

 

Thousands of rotting salmon ‘stink out’ village after mass death at farm.https://t.co/hOoOmXr0n7

— STV News (@STVNews) October 20, 2021

 

 

 

In what world can a food product which suffers 50%+ mortality be marketed as "responsibly sourced" and "farmed responsibly"?  Shame on supermarkets and certifiers such as the Soil Association, Aquaculture Stewardship Council and RSPCA Assured for greenwashing disease-ridden toxic Scottish salmon.   And shame on the Advertising Standards Authority and Competition and Markets Authority for allowing such false information to mislead the public!

 

In what world can a food product which suffers 50%+ mortality be marketed as "responsibly sourced" & "farmed responsibly"? Shame on supermarkets and certifiers for greenwashing disease-ridden toxic Scottish salmon! @ASA_UK @CMAgovUK @ScotlandSalmon @rspcaassured @MowiScotlandLtd pic.twitter.com/NgULQn8VmS

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 9, 2022

 

 

Anyone actually reading the industry's own data - and digesting the ugly truth behind the UK's #1 food export - cannot escape the conclusion that far from being "responsibly sourced" and "farmed responsibly" (as claimed by RSPCA Assured and the Aquaculture Stewardship Council) Scottish salmon is irresponsibly farmed. 

 

Just a thought - why don't MSPs visit salmon farms with mortality & disease problems? @ScotlandSalmon https://t.co/kjNDyAMgKa
If over half the livestock in a field were dying then the public would be outraged! @SP_NetZero @ArianeBurgessHI @fincarson @jenni_minto @LabourMercedes https://t.co/im6gT6DCpV pic.twitter.com/McYDxohAjR

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

 

 

In November 2021, Scottish Salmon Watch filed complaints against "responsibly sourced" and "responsibly farmed" Scottish salmon with the Advertising Standards Authority and Competion and Markets Authority.

 

Irresponsibly Farmed Scottish Salmon - Complaints Filed Vs Supermarkets with Advertising & Trading Standards! @ASA_UK @CMAgovUK @TSScot @NTSscamsteam @wirraltsd @CEC_TS @GlasgowCC @SalmonScotland @ScotlandSalmon @Ecohustler @animal_concern @ClientEarth https://t.co/XjkuDA7WsB pic.twitter.com/d4dp6VURvU

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 22, 2021

 

 

 

In January 2022, Scottish Salmon Watch wrote an open letter to the ASC asking that certification of Scottish salmon as "farmed responsibly" be cancelled due to the use of toxic chemicals, mass mortalities, infectious diseases and lice infestations. 

 

Open letter to the ASC: Please cancel all certification of Mowi's toxic Scottish salmon! https://t.co/N9MwDaN0kQ @ASC_aqua @MowiScotlandLtd @fms_scotland @SalmonTroutCons
Scottish salmon is farmed irresponsibly not responsibly! @rspcaassured @ASA_UK @sainsburys @Tesco @LidlGB pic.twitter.com/3L76as7mTY

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) January 6, 2022

 

 

 

In February 2022, $camon $cotland (formerly Scottish Salmon Watch) filed a complaint with Trading Standards against Mowi's 'organic' salmon sold via Ocado and Sainsbury's.

 

Complaint filed vs @Ocado & @sainsburys for deceptive marketing of "responsibly sourced" Scottish salmon with Trading Standards @CMAgovUK
Breach of the 'Green Claims Code' over marketing of @MowiScotlandLtd 'organic' salmon @SoilAssociation @SoilAssocScot https://t.co/DZVQ9cEB83 pic.twitter.com/9EvfLvCv8l

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) February 16, 2022

 

 

 

Later in February 2022, $camon $cotland called on Marks & Spencer to boycott RSPCA Assured "responsibly sourced" Scottish salmon from Norskott Havbruk (Scottish Sea Farms) due to Infectious Salmon Anaemia.

 

Anyone for M&S’s Virus-Laden Scottish Salmon (don’t worry, it’s “responsibly sourced” & @rspcaassured)?!https://t.co/A1AHbV9xFs @marksandspencer @scotseafarms @LeroySeafood @RSPCA_PATeam @Ecohustler
How many ISA-ridden Scottish salmon have been sold by M&S? #marksandspencer pic.twitter.com/kkNz7OcV1F

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) February 14, 2022

 

 

 

$camon $cotland reported in March 2022 - sourced from data reported by salmon farms in Scotland to the Scottish Government and published online via the Fish Health Inspectorate - that over 1.8 million "responsibly sourced" farmed salmon had died in the first six weeks of 2022.

 

A whistleblower told Scottish Salmon Watch in January that 600,000 farmed salmon had died in a welfare disaster @salmon_scottish's Applecross Hatchery - today @marinescotland reported 715,592 farmed salmon had died with a "systemic investigation ongoing"! https://t.co/DqDKfxFOiw pic.twitter.com/Hbb6bOPH2k

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) March 7, 2022

 

 

 

In May 2022, $camon $cotland filed a complaint against Sainsbury's with the Advertising Standards Authority.

 

Complaint filed today vs Sainsbury's for falsely advertising "responsibly sourced salmon" @ASA_UK
"No amount of greenwashing can hide the fact that Scottish salmon farming is inherently unsustainable and irresponsible" @sainsburys @ASC_aqua @rspcaassured https://t.co/vomcYIZ4Cd pic.twitter.com/ZMQQDMiLFn

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) May 4, 2022

 

 

 

Later in May 2022, $camon $cotland reported (once again sourced via industry reported data) how ASC-certified and RSPCA Assured Mowi was plagued by disease and mass mortalities (a staggering 10 million morts reported by Mowi since 2019 - according to industry reported data published by the Scottish Government).

 

Mowi Scotland reports a 42% fall in Q1 production from 2021 to 2022. "The overall biological situation is more challenging than in 2021, mainly related to AGD and gill issues. CMS also remains at a relatively high rate of detection" @MowiScotlandLtd https://t.co/nWtY8GzkTJ pic.twitter.com/ASgtu4Qsh3

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) May 12, 2022

 

 

Revealed: 10 Million Salmon Morts @MowiScotlandLtd Since 2019! @rspcaassured @ASC_aqua
Served @sainsburys @Tesco @AldiUK @LidlGB & other green-washed retailers with a side order of infectious diseases, toxic chemicals & antibiotics @ScotlandSalmon https://t.co/2yUq4oAE4C pic.twitter.com/mQnz8ZP8nW

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) May 13, 2022

 

 

 

Last month, Mowi reported a 32% fall in Scottish salmon farming production due to disease and mortality problems.

 

Mowi's Q2 2022 report reveals that Scottish salmon farming production fell 32% from Q2 2021 (falling from 19,162 to 12,954 tonnes) due to disease problems such as AGD & CMS, treatment mortality & poor quality "externally sourced" eggs @MowiScotlandLtd https://t.co/7VPQLKsfHP pic.twitter.com/u6gmrCJUip

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 24, 2022

 

 

 

All the time, Scottish Salmon Watch and $camon $cotland has sourced our information direct from published data - which is self-reported industry data made available to the public online via the Scottish Government's 'FHI Mortality Information' and 'FHI Case Information'; data published by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency and Marine Scotland via Scotland's Aquaculture; data published by Salmon Scotland, data published via quarterly reports published salmon farming companies and photos taken by the Scottish Government's Fish Health Inspectorate during visits to salmon farms.   The truth clearly hurts and upsets PR flaks who are desperately trying to polish the turd that is Scottish salmon. 

 

Edie Bowles @Animallawyersuk said the dossier, compiled by Don Staniford, a critic of salmon farming, indicated “systemic and obvious” pain & suffering that could justify legal action against @scotgov @MairiGougeon @SSPOsays https://t.co/ZuzAis8gEr @SundayTimesScot @ciwf @scotgp pic.twitter.com/RPVIAL3KlS

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) February 2, 2020

 

 

 

So when Joel Richardson of Cooke spouts about campaigners "misleading the public" with "false information" he is discrediting data supplied by the salmon farming industry and information gathered by the Scottish Government's Fish Health Inspectorate's visits to salmon farms.  Take a look in the mirror Mr Richardson and it's not a pretty sight (even if your Scottish salmon is certified as 'organic' and marketed as 'welfare friendly' via RSPCA Assured)!

 

Organic Scamon: here's what Cooke Aquaculture's salmon from Westray on Orkney look like (as inspected by @marinescotland in May) @The_Orcadian @bbcorkney @OrkneyCouncil
Why does the @SoilAssociation certify salmon farms as 'organic'? @SoilAssocScot @CookeScotland @cookeseafood pic.twitter.com/7FTcnt01zG

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 24, 2022

 

 

 

The uncomfortable truth is that Scottish salmon is greenwashed by certifiers such as the ASC, Soil Association and RSPCA Assured who rake in dirty $almoney. 

 

 

Greenwashing 'Sustainable' Salmon - how supermarkets brand themselves as "responsible" via ClientEarth! https://t.co/aTzLjczZcp @SSC_seafood @ClientEarth @rspcaassured @ASC_aqua @SoilAssociation @GSA_Seafood @ourGSSI @ScotlandSalmon @SalmonTroutCons @Ecohustler @ASA_UK @CMAgovUK pic.twitter.com/rAWoDpGjRH

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 25, 2021

 

 

Given the gruesome nature of Scottish salmon it is not surprising that salmon farming companies have attempted - unsuccessfully as it turned out - to stop publication claiming the public would not understand images of welfare abuse and disease. 

 

Mowi: "the risk of people turning away from a healthy food such as salmon as a reaction to irresponsible use of photos for the sole purpose of creating fear in the consumer, is a risk to public health" https://t.co/u9Fk2kOkxz @MowiScotlandLtd @marinescotland @FergusEwingMSP pic.twitter.com/M3AyD3jMTm

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) October 24, 2019

 

 

And now Norwegian giant Mowi is attempting to shut down secret filming inside salmon farms across Scotland to stop the public seeing the ugly truth about their disease-ridden operations.

 

Given the gruesome nature of welfare abuse, mass mortalities & lice infestations it is not surprising that this Norwegian-owned behemoth wants to stop the public from finding out the ugly truth about @rspcaassured Scottish salmon https://t.co/vF5nFV2sCD @MowiScotlandLtd @SSPOsays pic.twitter.com/UMMNlwvXq3

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) October 9, 2021

 

 

 

Thankfully, the truth always wins out in the end.  The camera never lies - unlike salmon farmers!

 

Video of French TV's 'The Truth About Salmon' featuring Mowi & The Scottish Salmon Company https://t.co/PIwqhztqhu @France5tv @hugoclement @MowiScotlandLtd @salmon_scottish @ScotlandSalmon @Folketrygdfond @Try_Lochlander @waitrose @sainsburys @Tesco @LidlGB @AldiUK @SaumonLabel pic.twitter.com/u16uaGZ97K

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) November 21, 2021

 

 

 

 

 

This shocking leaked footage shows salmon being eaten alive by lice at a fish farm in Scotland! pic.twitter.com/EoUO3dv5ee

— seaspiracy (@seaspiracy) August 2, 2021

 

 

 

 

Big shout out to the pioneers of secret filming & all the brave warriors who dared lift the lid on disease-ridden salmon farming - the underwater filming with Go Pro cameras started @alex4salmon in 2016 has turned the tide! https://t.co/ozbDedwAG6 @seashepherd @CaptPaulWatson pic.twitter.com/S1PPpCd3X9

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) October 15, 2021

 

 

 

Read more via:

MSPs steered away from disease-ridden Scottish salmon!

Cooke's Organic Scamon Exposed by Gruesome Photos from Orkney - RSPCA Assured Ouseness Oozes Welfare Abuse! 

56% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Mowi (but don't worry, it's certified as "farmed responsibly" by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council)!

Exposed: 10 Million Morts at RSPCA Assured Mowi Since 2019!

Revealed: 30+ Million Dead Scottish Salmon Since 2017 - over 8 million morts reported last year & over half a million in first two weeks of 2022!!

Charitable Warning: Mowi's Salmon Wagon is Hitting the Road Again - there's no such thing as a free farmed fish lunch!

Mowi's "Woes in Scotland" - Disease & Deaths Cause £5.6 Million Losses!

Over 80% Mortality at The Scottish Salmon Company!!!

ASC-Certified/Audited Mass Mortalities Pile Up at Lousy Mowi & Scottish Sea Farms!

New Mortality Data for Disease-Ridden Scottish Salmon - 700,000+ in the first two weeks of December!

Open letter to the ASC: Please cancel all certification of Mowi's toxic Scottish salmon!

Mowi's 'Host' With the Most....Toxic Chemicals & Antibiotics (certified as "responsibly farmed" by the ASC)!

ASC cancel Mowi certifications due to exceedances of antibiotics use, escape & "administrative reasons"!

Mass mortalities at ASC-certified Mowi!

Dead in the Water - Scottish Salmon's Mortality Mountain Piles Ever Higher in 2021!

Mass Mortalities - 66% in one month at The Scottish Salmon Company on the Isle of Gigha!

Lousy 'Scottish' Salmon - the most lice-infested salmon farms named & shamed!

Irresponsible Scottish Salmon Exposed: 'Scotland's Aquaculture' Publishes Data on Toxic Chemicals Use, Morts & Biomass Breaches

STV News: "Thousands of rotting salmon ‘stink out’ village after mass death at farm"

X-Rated Video: 90% Mortality at The Faroese/Norwegian 'Scottish' Salmon Company?!

Video Nasties of Dead Farmed Salmon Pile Up All Over the World!

Videos of Mort Disposal by The Scottish Salmon Company - like a serial killer disposing of dead bodies before the police arrive!

Demand for moratorium on new fish farms after mortality rates revealed

"The shocking death rates on Scotland's salmon farms revealed"

Rest Assured - the RSPCA has been captured, co-opted & corrupted by the Salmafia

2020: The Year of Diseased Scottish Salmon - 27,000 Tonnes of Dead Fish, the Worst On Record!

Stop the Scottish Salmondemic - please avoid disease-ridden farmed salmon like the proverbial plague!

Taking the Fish - Illegal Salmon Dump Caught Taking Diseased Fish from the Mainland Despite 'Derogation'!

FOI Lifts Lid on the Stench of Scottish Salmon: Government Legal Department Target Illegal Dumping of Diseased Salmon

The Times: "Fish graveyard ‘severely hampers’ life for islanders, officials claim"

Update: Mortality Rate Over 36% At RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon!

Mowi's 'Healthy' RSPCA Assured & ASC-Certified Salmon Farm at Gorsten (as featured in Seaspiracy)

Netflix's 'Seaspiracy' Exposes Disease-Ridden Scottish Salmon – As Sponsored by the RSPCA & Aquaculture Stewardship Council!

Mowi Moves Goalposts on ASC Certification

ASC-Certified Scottish Salmon Dead in the Water!

Anyone for ASC-Certified Scottish Salmon Doused in Carcinogenic Formaldehyde?

Revealed: Burned, Buried & Ensiled Scottish Salmon 

Update: 25 Million Mass Mortalities on Scottish Salmon Farms

52 million deaths in Norway - how many millions died on Scottish salmon farms in 2020?

The Case Against Scottish Salmon - An Update on Diseases & Mass Mortalities!

2.2 Million Missing Mortalities at Scottish Sea Farms?

Mass Mortalities Continue to Plague Scottish Salmon

Alexa, how many salmon die each year on Scottish salmon farms? 42 million* (but we don't know for sure as the answer is deemed "commercially damaging")!

Over One Million Morts for Scottish Salmon in September 2020!

Survival of the Unhealthiest Scottish Salmon - New data reveals shocking mortality rates!

Dead in the Water - New Data Reveals Mass Mortalities & Disease on Scottish Salmon Farms

The Ferret: "Farmed salmon deaths from disease reach record high"

The Killing Farms - Scottish Salmon's Horror Story Continues!

Solving Scottish Salmon's Multi-Million Mortality Problem

The Times: "Author Amy Liptrot joins island’s fish farm protest"

 

Today's Times: "A bestselling author whose memoir about growing up in Orkney is being made into a film starring Saoirse Ronan has joined local residents in objecting to a new salmon farm" @amy_may @sarah1990ward @timesscotland @CookeScotland @ScottishEPA https://t.co/kQcrp35FDr pic.twitter.com/6MDR8OXIaC

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 9, 2022

 

 

The Times reported (9 September 2022):

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Read more via:

Protests Continue Vs Cooke's Salmon Farming Expansion Off Orkney - appeal vs East Moclett in the pipeline!

Mega Media Splash Vs Cooke's Super-Sized Salmon Farm Off Orkney - The Scotsman, The Herald, The National, Daily Telegraph & even Fish Farmer!!

Daily Telegraph: "Orkney locals 'disregarded' over huge salmon farm plan"

No Way To Salmon Farm Off Papa Westray

Photos: Papa Westray Protest Vs Cooke Makes Waves Off Orkney!

Too Many Cookes - community resistance on Orkney spoils super-sized salmon plan off Papa Westray

Cooke's Organic Scamon Exposed by Gruesome Photos from Orkney!

Organic Scamon - The Soil Association's List of Shame!

Organic Scamon: Ocado Challenged Over Mowi's 'Responsibly' Farmed Salmon - 100% Bullshit not 100% Scottish!

Scottish 'Organic' Scamon Leaps 181% - 4,462 tonnes to 12,528 tonnes from 2019 to 2020!

'Organic' Salmon Fit for the Queen? Not Even Fit for Her Dogs!

Net Tightens on Lawsuits vs 'Salmafia' - Cooke "unable to quash lawsuit over deceptive marketing practices"

Toxic Salmon Corrodes Soil Association's 'Organic' Principles

Scottish salmon is so not organic!

Organic Salmon Belongs in the Bin Not Your Shopping Basket!

Dutch TV slams "organic" salmon

EXPOSED: Scottish 'Organic' Scamon

Organic” farmed salmon – let’s get real

Shetland salmon packing factory leaks 'blood water' into sea

Cooke's Untreated Blood Water is "Gross" says SEPA - "Poor" processing plant pollutes Mid Yell Voe in Shetland

BBC Radio Shetland on Cooke's "untreated blood water" in Scotland

BBC News: "Shetland salmon packing factory leaks 'blood water' into sea"

More troubles for Cooke, with Scottish “blood water” claims

Environmental Event report re. "raw effluent" and overflowing "blood water" at Cooke's Mid Yell processing plant - January 2017

Organic Scamon - The Greenwashing of Toxic Farmed Salmon

Why organic salmon is causing a nasty smell

Concern over organic salmon farms

"Organically Farmed Salmon Is An Oxymoron" (The Organic Standard, 2001)

 

 

"No East Moclett Group is considering our options and will be filing an appeal subject to legal opinion. No means no - the population of Papay are fed up of having to fight off salmon farm developers from encroaching into their precious inshore waters" https://t.co/LgaNEHGVY1 pic.twitter.com/MqtdiCTJbe

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

Protests Continue Vs Cooke's Salmon Farming Expansion Off Orkney - appeal vs East Moclett in the pipeline!

 

The battle goes on vs Cooke Aquaculture's 'organic' expansion off Orkney @RutterfordArt
"I find it particularly distressing that the planning process has been handled in such an underhand way. There has been a duplicitous lack of transparency" #Appeal @OrkneyCouncil @amy_may pic.twitter.com/X0ckYOw1cw

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

 

 

Commenting after the decision by Orkney Islands Council earlier this afternoon (8 September 2022) to grant approval to what will be Scotland's largest salmon farm off the island of Papa Westray, No East Moclett Group told $camon $cotland:

 

"No East Moclett Group is considering our options and will be filing an appeal subject to legal opinion. No means no - the population of Papay are fed up of having to fight off salmon farm developers from encroaching into their precious inshore waters" https://t.co/LgaNEHGVY1 pic.twitter.com/MqtdiCTJbe

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

 

"Granting approval without proper consultation or community support is an affront to local democracy.   In ignoring blanket opposition, OIC and Cooke have treated islanders on Papa Westray with sheer contempt.  No East Moclett Group is considering our options and will be filing an appeal subject to legal opinion.  No means no - the population of Papay are fed up of having to fight off salmon farm developers from encroaching into their precious inshore waters.  Enough is enough - allowing further expansion of 'organic' salmon farming in Orkney is a threat to the marine environment and tourism.  Today's decision is just the beginning of our fight against Cooke and the council's unreasonable approval of Scotland's largest salmon farm".

 

"Granting approval without proper consultation or community support is an affront to local democracy. In ignoring blanket opposition, @OrkneyCouncil & @CookeScotland have treated islanders on Papay with sheer contempt" (No East Moclett Group)https://t.co/LgaNEHGo8t @amy_may pic.twitter.com/rFKLJqjJNm

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

"Enough is enough - allowing further expansion of 'organic' salmon farming in Orkney is a threat to the marine environment & tourism. This is just the beginning of our fight vs Cooke & the council's unreasonable approval of Scotland's largest salmon farm" https://t.co/LgaNEHGo8t pic.twitter.com/jdDjYNItj7

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 9, 2022

 

 

 

Here's audio of objections raised with Orkney Islands Council during the planning committee meeting on 8 September 2022 - when Cooke Aquaculture were granted approval to Scotland's largest 'organic' salmon farm despite overwhelming opposition locally on Papa Westray:

 

 

 

Poor decision making yet again by @OrkneyIslandsCouncil. A death knell served to the Papay #Marine Protected Area by approving yet another fish farm to be built in an environmentally sensitive area. #plasticpollution #Seagrass #kelpforest #biodiversity #Ecosystemservices

— Dr Joanne Porter #WorkingToContract (@JoanneSPorter) September 8, 2022

 

 

 

 

An application for a salmon farm off east Moclett, Papa Westray has been met with approval by #Orkney islands planning committee.

Hearing from 4 of the dozens of objectors and the applicant, the committee gave it the thumbs-up with no movement to refuse put forward.

— Andrew Stewart LDR (@ARMstew) September 8, 2022

 

 

Chris Rutterford - one of the UK's top mural artists - wrote to Orkney Islands Council in March 2022:

 

 

 

Cooke's salmon farm "will be massively detrimental for the island & will have nothing but a negative impact for all residents throughout the community not to mention the environment. This cannot be allowed to happen" (artist Chris Rutterford) @OrkneyCouncil @CookeScotland pic.twitter.com/ZcwlgDT760

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

 

 

 

The Orcadian reported (8 September 2022):

 

 

 

Disgraceful! Disgusting and utterly disrespectful! https://t.co/Nz0ukoLlA2

— Kate Chatto (@KateChatto1) September 9, 2022

 

 

 

Salmon Business reported (8 September 2022):

 

 

 

Organic Scamon: here's what Cooke Aquaculture's salmon from Westray on Orkney look like (as inspected by @marinescotland in May) @The_Orcadian @bbcorkney @OrkneyCouncil
Why does the @SoilAssociation certify salmon farms as 'organic'? @SoilAssocScot @CookeScotland @cookeseafood pic.twitter.com/7FTcnt01zG

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 24, 2022

 

 

 

Fish Farming Expert reported (8 September 2022):

 

 

 

Intrafish reported (8 September 2022):

 

 

 

 

Undercurrent News reported (8 September 2022):

 

 

 

 

Read more via:

Mega Media Splash Vs Cooke's Super-Sized Salmon Farm Off Orkney - The Scotsman, The Herald, The National, Daily Telegraph & even Fish Farmer!!

Daily Telegraph: "Orkney locals 'disregarded' over huge salmon farm plan"

No Way To Salmon Farm Off Papa Westray

Photos: Papa Westray Protest Vs Cooke Makes Waves Off Orkney!

Too Many Cookes - community resistance on Orkney spoils super-sized salmon plan off Papa Westray

Cooke's Organic Scamon Exposed by Gruesome Photos from Orkney!

Organic Scamon - The Soil Association's List of Shame!

Organic Scamon: Ocado Challenged Over Mowi's 'Responsibly' Farmed Salmon - 100% Bullshit not 100% Scottish!

Scottish 'Organic' Scamon Leaps 181% - 4,462 tonnes to 12,528 tonnes from 2019 to 2020!

'Organic' Salmon Fit for the Queen? Not Even Fit for Her Dogs!

Net Tightens on Lawsuits vs 'Salmafia' - Cooke "unable to quash lawsuit over deceptive marketing practices"

Toxic Salmon Corrodes Soil Association's 'Organic' Principles

Scottish salmon is so not organic!

Organic Salmon Belongs in the Bin Not Your Shopping Basket!

Dutch TV slams "organic" salmon

EXPOSED: Scottish 'Organic' Scamon

Organic” farmed salmon – let’s get real

Shetland salmon packing factory leaks 'blood water' into sea

Cooke's Untreated Blood Water is "Gross" says SEPA - "Poor" processing plant pollutes Mid Yell Voe in Shetland

BBC Radio Shetland on Cooke's "untreated blood water" in Scotland

BBC News: "Shetland salmon packing factory leaks 'blood water' into sea"

More troubles for Cooke, with Scottish “blood water” claims

Environmental Event report re. "raw effluent" and overflowing "blood water" at Cooke's Mid Yell processing plant - January 2017

Organic Scamon - The Greenwashing of Toxic Farmed Salmon

Why organic salmon is causing a nasty smell

Concern over organic salmon farms

"Organically Farmed Salmon Is An Oxymoron" (The Organic Standard, 2001)

 

 

“If local democracy counts for anything, Orkney Islands Council has no other choice but to say no to East Moclett salmon farm” @TheScotsman https://t.co/3KvDJox5xq
Will @OrkneyCouncil listen to Papa Westray & refuse approval? @KristopherLeask @JohnRossScott @KirstyCooncil

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

MSPs steered away from disease-ridden Scottish salmon!

 

Just a thought - why don't MSPs visit salmon farms with mortality & disease problems? @ScotlandSalmon https://t.co/kjNDyAMgKa
If over half the livestock in a field were dying then the public would be outraged! @SP_NetZero @ArianeBurgessHI @fincarson @jenni_minto @LabourMercedes https://t.co/im6gT6DCpV pic.twitter.com/McYDxohAjR

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

 

 

Here's an email sent to MSPs scheduled to visit a salmon farm operated by Norskott Havbruk (Scottish Sea Farms) at Dunstaffnage near Oban on Sunday (11 September) or Monday (12 September):

 

From: Don Staniford <[email protected]>
Date: Thu, Sep 8, 2022 at 12:57 PM
Subject: MSP visit to Dunstaffnage salmon farm - why not peek inside Loch Creran?
To: <rural.committee@parliament.scot>, Burgess A (Ariane), MSP <Ariane.Burgess.msp@parliament.scot>, MSP <Rachael.Hamilton.msp@parliament.scot>, Carson F (Finlay), MSP <Finlay.Carson.msp@parliament.scot>, <Jenni.Minto.msp@parliament.scot>, <Beatrice.Wishart.msp@parliament.scot>, <Mercedes.Villalba.msp@parliament.scot>
Cc: Gougeon M (Mairi), MSP <Mairi.Gougeon.msp@parliament.scot>, Ruskell M (Mark), MSP <Mark.Ruskell.msp@parliament.scot>, MSP <Patrick.Harvie.msp@parliament.scot>, MSP <Ross.Greer.msp@parliament.scot>, Johnstone A (Alison), MSP <Alison.Johnstone.msp@parliament.scot>, <[email protected]>, <netzero.committee@parliament.scot>, <directormarinescotland@gov.scot>, <[email protected]>, Cathy Dwyer <[email protected]>, <Maggie.Chapman.msp@parliament.scot>, Fergus Ewing <Fergus.Ewing.msp@scottish.parliament.uk>, Forbes K (Kate), MSP <Kate.Forbes.msp@parliament.scot>, <Mairi.McAllan.msp@parliament.scot>, Mountain E (Edward), MSP <Edward.Mountain.msp@parliament.scot>, MSP <Alex.Rowley.msp@parliament.scot>, Beamish C (Claudia), MSP <Claudia.Beamish.msp@parliament.scot>, MSP <Maree.Todd.msp@parliament.scot>, Cameron D (Donald), MSP <Donald.Cameron.msp@parliament.scot>

 

I was reading that MSPs are scheduled to the Barcaldine hatchery and the Dunstaffnage salmon farm operated by Scottish Sea Farms: https://www.fishfarmingexpert.com/scottish-parliament-scottish-sea-farms/msps-to-see-salmon-farming-up-close/1427183

 

During your visit why don't you take a boat trip from Barcaldine - Scottish Sea Farms have a boat there which can take you out to the site - to the Loch Creran salmon farm?

 

It's much closer than driving down to Dunstaffnage and then taking a boat out from there. 

 

$camon $cotland kayaked out to the Loch Creran salmon farm in July (as well as visiting other Scottish Sea Farms sites in the Sound of Mull) and we were shocked to discover dead and diseased salmon at the RSPCA Assured site.  You can watch video footage and see photos via:

 

Video Exclusive: Secret Filming Exposes Horrific Welfare Abuse Inside RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon Farms

 

Photos of Welfare Abuse at RSPCA Assured Scottish Sea Farms

 

 

A summary of video footage shot in Loch Creran two months ago is online via:

Secret Filming at Scottish Sea Farms 8 July 2022 Creran in Loch Creran

 

 

BBC Countryfile featured the RSPCA Assured salmon farm in Loch Creran in December 2020 - and once more found shocking welfare abuse:

 

BBC Countryfile features lice-infested RSPCA Assured salmon!

 

 

If you look at the latest biomass data published by SEPA via Scotland's Aquaculture, you will see that the Dunstaffnage salmon farm was empty of fish in December 2021 (the latest data available): http://aquaculture.scotland.gov.uk/data/fish_farms_monthly_biomass_and_treatment_reports_record.aspx?monthly_data_id=4692883

 

If you look at Salmon Scotland's data then you will see that the Dunstaffnage salmon farm was only stocked in May 2022: https://www.salmonscotland.co.uk/sites/default/files/2022-07/may_2022.pdf (note that Loch Creran salmon farm reported 6.5% mortality in the month of May 2022)

 

Loch Creran salmon farm reported 17.9% monthly mortality in July 2022 alone (compared to 0.2% for Dunstaffnage salmon farm and 7.6% mortality at Lismore East): https://www.salmonscotland.co.uk/sites/default/files/2022-09/july_2022.pdf

 

To put the above mortality rate into perspective, 17.9% mortality represents one in six farmed salmon dying in a single month.  If this rate of death was happening on land in a sheep farm or one in six cows in a field were dying then the public would be outraged.

 

Suffice to say that it would be more environmentally friendly - meaning less travel - if the RECC visited Loch Creran salmon farm rather than Dunstaffnage. 

 

Obviously, Scottish Sea Farms and Salmon Scotland want to steer you away from disease and mortality problems.  Speaking of which, MSPs should take a close look at the mortality data published recently by Salmon Scotland for July 2022 which includes the following salmon farms which reported alarming death rates:

 

 

Just to make it simple for people, like me who may have been in the remedial Maths class at school, a cumulative mortality of 59.5% (as reported by Mowi at RSPCA Assured Greshornish salmon farm) means that if 1 million farmed salmon were stocked on the site in March 2021 then only ca. 400,000 made it out alive (i.e. 6 out of every fish died). 

 

Read and weep at the latest mortality data for July 2022 (as reported by salmon farming companies themselves) via: https://www.salmonscotland.co.uk/sites/default/files/2022-09/july_2022.pdf

 

If you look at the mortality data for June 2022 then you have 55.9% cumulative mortality at Mowi's RSPCA Assured and ASC-certified Greanem salmon farm and 30.6% cumulative mortality at Bakkafrost's Portree salmon farm: https://www.salmonscotland.co.uk/sites/default/files/2022-08/june_2022.pdf

 

You may have read the recent BBC report on how toxic gases are leaking from Bakkafrost's salmon farm off Portee:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/cjl7kkr0r12o

 

You may even have read $camon $cotland's blog last month on mortality problems at Mowi:

56% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Mowi (but don't worry, it's certified as "farmed responsibly" by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council)!

 

If you cannot visit a disease-ridden salmon farm for yourself - bear in mind that salmon farming companies may only offer you the red carpet treatment to pristine sites where fish have just been stocked (farms in the second year of production are the ones to target) - then here's some video footage from Mowi's RSPCA Assured Greshornish salmon farm: https://vimeo.com/441103390

 

Undercover video footage shot by investigators at CIWF was also published in March 2021:

https://theferret.scot/suffering-endemic-scottish-salmon-farms-video/

 

Photos of welfare abuse inside salmon farms are available via:

https://ciwf.assetbank-server.com/assetbank-ciwf/images/assetbox/acacf722-717d-46b8-a03e-05473c23360c/assetbox.html

https://donstaniford.typepad.com/my-blog/2020/02/photo-dossier-of-diseased-deformed-abused-scottish-salmon.html

https://donstaniford.typepad.com/my-blog/2022/08/cookes-organic-scamon-exposed-by-gruesome-photos-from-orkney-.html

 

Instead of choosing to look the other way - and going along with what the nice lady at Scottish Sea Farms or lovely man at Mowi and Bakkafrost tells you - don't MSPs have a duty to investigate the issue more fully?

 

 

The RECC visit to Dunstaffnage salmon farm is rather like a serial killer showing you around his lovely new house which has just been cleaned but failing to show you all the dead bodies piled up in his house of death next door. 

 

Surely the RECC visit is an opportunity to ask critical questions of the disease-ridden salmon farming industry rather than be duped by their sick/slick PR game?

 

Please note my Tweets on this via:

https://twitter.com/TheGAAIA/status/1567835798942236673

https://twitter.com/TheGAAIA/status/1567462431256973313

 

If you would like to visit a salmon farm with disease and mortality problems - perhaps in a kayak early in the morning before Tavish Scott has even eaten his listeria-contaminated smoked salmon bagel - please let me know.  I am on 07771 541826. 

 

A simple rule: the salmon farms which the industry is willing to show you and allow you to visit are NOT the ones which warrant investigation.  However, you may pick up a police escort for daring to go close to disease-ridden salmon cages:

https://donstaniford.typepad.com/my-blog/2020/07/policing-scottish-salmon-police-scotland-acting-as-private-security-for-scottish-sea-farms.html

https://donstaniford.typepad.com/my-blog/2020/10/police-scotland-apologises-for-wrongly-protecting-scottish-sea-farms-from-video-surveillance.html

 

For more background please read:

Whitewashing Welfare Abuse of Scottish Salmon (as sponsored via RSPCA, SSPCA & APHA)

Closing the Net on Welfare Abuse on Salmon Farms - Scottish Veterinary Service replaces APHAd

 

 

 

Best fishes,

 

Don Staniford

 

Director, $camon $cotland

 

 

 

MSPs to see salmon farming up close - if you're visiting Barcaldine then why not visit the disease-ridden salmon feedlot in Loch Creran? @scotseafarms @fincarson @SP_RuralAffairs @ArianeBurgessHI @BeatriceWishart @Rachael2Win @jenni_minto @LabourMercedeshttps://t.co/cTLxlir52X pic.twitter.com/zzpNGBfXvW

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 7, 2022

 

 

Video Exclusive: Secret Filming Exposes Horrific Welfare Abuse Inside RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon Farms! https://t.co/PHFsqdRJ7i @rspcaassured @scotseafarms @marksandspencer @ScottishSPCA @APHAgovuk @ProfCMDwyer @LynneUSneddon @ciwf @Animallawyersuk @vivacampaigns @Ecohustler pic.twitter.com/RLJYPfe1w8

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) July 11, 2022

 

 

 

 $camon $cotland reported last month (23 August 2022):

 

REVEALED: Mortality rates at feedlots across Scotland are leaping like a lice-infested salmon - with a staggering 55.9% (i.e. more than half of the fish dying) @MowiScotlandLtd @rspcaassured @ASC_aqua Greanem in North Uist https://t.co/kjNDyAMgKa @ScotlandSalmon @tavishscott pic.twitter.com/4893yS4LQ2

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 23, 2022

 

 

 

 

 

Scottish Salmon Watch reported in December 2021: 

 

Named & Shamed @ScotlandSalmon - the salmon farms with the worst mortality. Headed by @scotseafarms with 41.3% mortality in Loch Kishorn followed by 32.8% mortality in Loch Spelve (where ISA was reported in May) & @salmon_scottish & @LochDuartSalmon sites https://t.co/rKHGuzMb37 pic.twitter.com/Atboh6H6ds

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) December 10, 2021

 

 

 

 

 

Read more via:

 

Toxic Gasses Spew From The Scottish Salmon Company (Bakkafrost Scotland) Off Portree

 

Cooke's Organic Scamon Exposed by Gruesome Photos from Orkney - RSPCA Assured Ouseness Oozes Welfare Abuse! 

 

56% Mortality at RSPCA Assured Mowi (but don't worry, it's certified as "farmed responsibly" by the Aquaculture Stewardship Council)!

Exposed: 10 Million Morts at RSPCA Assured Mowi Since 2019!

Revealed: 30+ Million Dead Scottish Salmon Since 2017 - over 8 million morts reported last year & over half a million in first two weeks of 2022!!

Mowi's "Woes in Scotland" - Disease & Deaths Cause £5.6 Million Losses!

Over 80% Mortality at The Scottish Salmon Company!!!

ASC-Certified/Audited Mass Mortalities Pile Up at Lousy Mowi & Scottish Sea Farms!

New Mortality Data for Disease-Ridden Scottish Salmon - 700,000+ in the first two weeks of December!

Open letter to the ASC: Please cancel all certification of Mowi's toxic Scottish salmon!

Mowi's 'Host' With the Most....Toxic Chemicals & Antibiotics (certified as "responsibly farmed" by the ASC)!

ASC cancel Mowi certifications due to exceedances of antibiotics use, escape & "administrative reasons"!

Mass mortalities at ASC-certified Mowi!

Dead in the Water - Scottish Salmon's Mortality Mountain Piles Ever Higher in 2021!

Mass Mortalities - 66% in one month at The Scottish Salmon Company on the Isle of Gigha!

Greenwashing 'Sustainable' Salmon - how supermarkets brand themselves as "responsible" via ClientEarth!

 

Irresponsibly Farmed Scottish Salmon - Complaints Filed Vs Supermarkets with Advertising & Trading Standards!

 

X-Rated Video: 90% Mortality at The Faroese/Norwegian 'Scottish' Salmon Company?!

 

Video Nasties of Dead Farmed Salmon Pile Up All Over the World!

Videos of Mort Disposal by The Scottish Salmon Company - like a serial killer disposing of dead bodies before the police arrive!

Demand for moratorium on new fish farms after mortality rates revealed

"The shocking death rates on Scotland's salmon farms revealed"

Rest Assured - the RSPCA has been captured, co-opted & corrupted by the Salmafia

2020: The Year of Diseased Scottish Salmon - 27,000 Tonnes of Dead Fish, the Worst On Record!

Stop the Scottish Salmondemic - please avoid disease-ridden farmed salmon like the proverbial plague!

Taking the Fish - Illegal Salmon Dump Caught Taking Diseased Fish from the Mainland Despite 'Derogation'!

FOI Lifts Lid on the Stench of Scottish Salmon: Government Legal Department Target Illegal Dumping of Diseased Salmon

The Times: "Fish graveyard ‘severely hampers’ life for islanders, officials claim"

Update: Mortality Rate Over 36% At RSPCA Assured Scottish Salmon!

Mowi's 'Healthy' RSPCA Assured & ASC-Certified Salmon Farm at Gorsten (as featured in Seaspiracy)

Netflix's 'Seaspiracy' Exposes Disease-Ridden Scottish Salmon – As Sponsored by the RSPCA & Aquaculture Stewardship Council!

Mowi Moves Goalposts on ASC Certification

ASC-Certified Scottish Salmon Dead in the Water!

Anyone for ASC-Certified Scottish Salmon Doused in Carcinogenic Formaldehyde?

Revealed: Burned, Buried & Ensiled Scottish Salmon 

Update: 25 Million Mass Mortalities on Scottish Salmon Farms

52 million deaths in Norway - how many millions died on Scottish salmon farms in 2020?

The Case Against Scottish Salmon - An Update on Diseases & Mass Mortalities!

2.2 Million Missing Mortalities at Scottish Sea Farms?

Mass Mortalities Continue to Plague Scottish Salmon

Alexa, how many salmon die each year on Scottish salmon farms? 42 million* (but we don't know for sure as the answer is deemed "commercially damaging")!

Over One Million Morts for Scottish Salmon in September 2020!

Survival of the Unhealthiest Scottish Salmon - New data reveals shocking mortality rates!

Dead in the Water - New Data Reveals Mass Mortalities & Disease on Scottish Salmon Farms

The Ferret: "Farmed salmon deaths from disease reach record high"

The Killing Farms - Scottish Salmon's Horror Story Continues!

Solving Scottish Salmon's Multi-Million Mortality Problem

 

 

Revealed: 10 Million Salmon Morts @MowiScotlandLtd Since 2019! @rspcaassured @ASC_aqua
Served @sainsburys @Tesco @AldiUK @LidlGB & other green-washed retailers with a side order of infectious diseases, toxic chemicals & antibiotics @ScotlandSalmon https://t.co/2yUq4oAE4C pic.twitter.com/mQnz8ZP8nW

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) May 13, 2022

 

Mega Media Splash Vs Cooke's Super-Sized Salmon Farm Off Orkney - The Scotsman, The Herald, The National, Daily Telegraph & even Fish Farmer!!

 

“If local democracy counts for anything, Orkney Islands Council has no other choice but to say no to East Moclett salmon farm” @TheScotsman https://t.co/3KvDJox5xq
Will @OrkneyCouncil listen to Papa Westray & refuse approval? @KristopherLeask @JohnRossScott @KirstyCooncil

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

 

Papa Westray's protest against plans by Canadian giant Cooke Aquaculture for what would be Scotland's largest salmon farm - to be greenwashed as 'organic' via the Soil Association - at East Moclett in North Sound in the far North of the Orkney Islands is making waves in the media with news coverage in The Daily Telegraph, The Herald, The National, The Scotsman and even Fish Farmer.   The National reported with a front page by-line (8 September 2022):

 

 

 

Jonathan Ford of No East Moclett Group @ScotNational: "Folk on Papay remain defiant & will do so beyond decision day. We don’t want industrial farming of our seas. Island communities can survive & prosper without destroying the very environment which makes them what they are" pic.twitter.com/Twkfpne2Xs

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

Download front page as a Jpeg online here and the newspaper article as a Jpeg online here

 

Front page splash in today's National newspaper - with protestors on Papay sharing centre stage with the Prime Minister & First Minister https://t.co/06aLl0F1xM
Will @OrkneyCouncil ignore public opinion & approve @CookeScotland's mega salmon farm? @ArianeBurgessHI @amy_may pic.twitter.com/gcF9KqSX1Z

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

 

The Scotsman reported (8 September 2022):

 

The Scotsman: "A Scottish author whose book is currently being made into a film in Orkney has joined locals in the islands to protest against what will be Scotland’s biggest salmon farm if it goes ahead" @TheScotsman @amy_may @Ilonaamos @ArianeBurgessHI https://t.co/3KvDJox5xq

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

 

Download newspaper version as a Jpeg online here

 

 

Activist Don Staniford @TheScotsman: "Salmon cages are spreading around the Highlands & Islands like a malignant cancer and must be eradicated, not accelerated. Cooke’s reckless expansion must be stopped dead in its tracks" https://t.co/3KvDJox5xq @OrkneyCouncil @CookeScotland

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

 

The Herald reported (8 September 2022):

 

 

 

"Papay has been a living community for over 6000 years without resorting to wholesale destruction of its local environment. Why change that now" @PapayRanger @heraldscotland @CookeScotland @cookeseafood @OrkneyCouncil @amy_may @KateChatto1 @orkneycom https://t.co/OOI6bTaPOT pic.twitter.com/rGnAmfZfxs

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 8, 2022

 

Here's the newspaper version:

 

 

Download newspaper version as a Jpeg online here

 

 

 

Fish Farming Expert reported (8 September 2022):

 

 

 

 

Fish Farmer reported (7 September 2022):

 

 

A group objecting to Cooke’s proposal for a new offshore salmon farm in the north of Orkney has staged a protest on the island of Papa Westray - the No East Moclett group claims that the proposed farm will be a disaster for the environment @fishfarmermag https://t.co/MESm9riBsb

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 7, 2022

 

 

 

The Daily Telegraph reported (7 September 2022):

 

 

I'm quoted here adding my voice to islanders' objections to a massive new fish farm off Papay. In addition to these concerns is its proximity to a Marine Protected Area. https://t.co/hllNRWvqsS

— Amy Liptrot (@amy_may) September 7, 2022

 

 

 

 

 

Download high resolution photos online here (please credit 'No East Moclett Group'):

 

No Way To Salmon Farm Off Papa Westray - protestors in the far north of the Orkney Islands tell Canadian giant Cooke to fish off! https://t.co/WULE0dsD5s@CookeScotland @cookeseafood @ScotlandSalmon
Will @OrkneyCouncil listen to the people of Papay? @Liam4Orkney @bbcorkney pic.twitter.com/IIjnxyz5Zi

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 7, 2022

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

A media advisory provides more background online here

 

 

Devastation!
Nobody is listening to over 120 valid objections - dumbed down to 82 for no better reason than to diminish the feelings of the Papay folk. This is industrial and toxic in an, as yet, pristine marine environment! Constant faecal effluent equal to 49,500 humans! https://t.co/kHvDfeDblR

— Kate Chatto (@KateChatto1) September 7, 2022

 

 

 

Read more via:

Daily Telegraph: "Orkney locals 'disregarded' over huge salmon farm plan"

No Way To Salmon Farm Off Papa Westray

Photos: Papa Westray Protest Vs Cooke Makes Waves Off Orkney!

Too Many Cookes - community resistance on Orkney spoils super-sized salmon plan off Papa Westray

Cooke's Organic Scamon Exposed by Gruesome Photos from Orkney!

Organic Scamon - The Soil Association's List of Shame!

Organic Scamon: Ocado Challenged Over Mowi's 'Responsibly' Farmed Salmon - 100% Bullshit not 100% Scottish!

Scottish 'Organic' Scamon Leaps 181% - 4,462 tonnes to 12,528 tonnes from 2019 to 2020!

'Organic' Salmon Fit for the Queen? Not Even Fit for Her Dogs!

Net Tightens on Lawsuits vs 'Salmafia' - Cooke "unable to quash lawsuit over deceptive marketing practices"

Toxic Salmon Corrodes Soil Association's 'Organic' Principles

Scottish salmon is so not organic!

Organic Salmon Belongs in the Bin Not Your Shopping Basket!

Dutch TV slams "organic" salmon

EXPOSED: Scottish 'Organic' Scamon

Organic” farmed salmon – let’s get real

Shetland salmon packing factory leaks 'blood water' into sea

Cooke's Untreated Blood Water is "Gross" says SEPA - "Poor" processing plant pollutes Mid Yell Voe in Shetland

BBC Radio Shetland on Cooke's "untreated blood water" in Scotland

BBC News: "Shetland salmon packing factory leaks 'blood water' into sea"

More troubles for Cooke, with Scottish “blood water” claims

Environmental Event report re. "raw effluent" and overflowing "blood water" at Cooke's Mid Yell processing plant - January 2017

Organic Scamon - The Greenwashing of Toxic Farmed Salmon

Why organic salmon is causing a nasty smell

Concern over organic salmon farms

"Organically Farmed Salmon Is An Oxymoron" (The Organic Standard, 2001)

 

 

'Organic' Scamon: salmon farming production in Scotland certified as 'organic' quadrupled from 3,104 tonnes in 2011 to 12,528 tonnes in 2020 but the number of sites fell from 10 to 9 (i.e. farms are getting much bigger)! https://t.co/BVJNapYi5M @SoilAssocScot @CookeScotland pic.twitter.com/wZCnURAZKP

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 7, 2022

 

 

Orkney's 'Organic' Scam: salmon farming in Orkney - much of it certified as "organic" - more than trebled from 6,369 tonnes in 2011 to a projected 23,104 tonnes in 2021 – an increase of 263% in a decade! https://t.co/EV5TYcXVKD @SoilAssociation @SoilAssociation @scotgp @peterk69 pic.twitter.com/QRaqVJFcxa

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 7, 2022

 

 

 

 

 

 

A media advisory provides more background online here

 

 

Devastation!
Nobody is listening to over 120 valid objections - dumbed down to 82 for no better reason than to diminish the feelings of the Papay folk. This is industrial and toxic in an, as yet, pristine marine environment! Constant faecal effluent equal to 49,500 humans! https://t.co/kHvDfeDblR

— Kate Chatto (@KateChatto1) September 7, 2022

 

 

 

Daily Telegraph: "Orkney locals 'disregarded' over huge salmon farm plan"

 

Today's Daily Telegraph: "Orkney locals 'disregarded' over huge salmon farm plan" @Telegraph @cookeseafood @CookeScotland @amy_may @OrkneyCouncil @ArianeBurgessHI
"Well-informed objections are clearly not being take seriously" said Wendy Elves of No East Moclett Group #Cooke pic.twitter.com/ZDqvBpqQc3

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 7, 2022

 

 

 

The Daily Telegraph reported (7 September 2022):

 

 

Download as a PDF online here

 

 

Devastation!
Nobody is listening to over 120 valid objections - dumbed down to 82 for no better reason than to diminish the feelings of the Papay folk. This is industrial and toxic in an, as yet, pristine marine environment! Constant faecal effluent equal to 49,500 humans! https://t.co/kHvDfeDblR

— Kate Chatto (@KateChatto1) September 7, 2022

 

 

I'm quoted here adding my voice to islanders' objections to a massive new fish farm off Papay. In addition to these concerns is its proximity to a Marine Protected Area. https://t.co/hllNRWvqsS

— Amy Liptrot (@amy_may) September 7, 2022

 

There are inaccuracies within this, but great that Daniel Sanderson managed write this piece.The proportions of this fish farm are vast, way over and above any other, and the dubbing down of over 120 objections from folk living in and connected to Papay is so disrespectful. pic.twitter.com/1m32qG1tQ1

— Kate Chatto (@KateChatto1) September 7, 2022

 

 

 

Download high resolution photos of a protest against Cooke on Papa Westray on Monday (5 September 2022) online here

 

No Way To Salmon Farm Off Papa Westray - protestors in the far north of the Orkney Islands tell Canadian giant Cooke to fish off! https://t.co/WULE0dsD5s@CookeScotland @cookeseafood @ScotlandSalmon
Will @OrkneyCouncil listen to the people of Papay? @Liam4Orkney @bbcorkney pic.twitter.com/IIjnxyz5Zi

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 7, 2022

 

 

 

 

Respect Papay: 102 objections were filed vs what would be Scotland's largest salmon farm with only one letter of support @OrkneyCouncil @CookeScotland
Approval would be an affront to local democracy! @KristopherLeask @KirstyCooncil @bbcorkney @orkneycom @JohnRossScott @scotgp pic.twitter.com/Xw5KMXPPxS

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 7, 2022

 

 

 

Cooke Aquaculture - a serial polluter, now wants to begin trashing the coast off Papa Westray: and the council reccommend a Yes please despite every one of the island's 70 residents saying No thanks.

— Niall McKillop (@Badabrach) September 7, 2022

 

Read more via:

No Way To Salmon Farm Off Papa Westray

Photos: Papa Westray Protest Vs Cooke Makes Waves Off Orkney!

Too Many Cookes - community resistance on Orkney spoils super-sized salmon plan off Papa Westray

Cooke's Organic Scamon Exposed by Gruesome Photos from Orkney!

Organic Scamon - The Soil Association's List of Shame!

Organic Scamon: Ocado Challenged Over Mowi's 'Responsibly' Farmed Salmon - 100% Bullshit not 100% Scottish!

Scottish 'Organic' Scamon Leaps 181% - 4,462 tonnes to 12,528 tonnes from 2019 to 2020!

'Organic' Salmon Fit for the Queen? Not Even Fit for Her Dogs!

Net Tightens on Lawsuits vs 'Salmafia' - Cooke "unable to quash lawsuit over deceptive marketing practices"

Toxic Salmon Corrodes Soil Association's 'Organic' Principles

Scottish salmon is so not organic!

Organic Salmon Belongs in the Bin Not Your Shopping Basket!

Dutch TV slams "organic" salmon

EXPOSED: Scottish 'Organic' Scamon

Organic” farmed salmon – let’s get real

Shetland salmon packing factory leaks 'blood water' into sea

Cooke's Untreated Blood Water is "Gross" says SEPA - "Poor" processing plant pollutes Mid Yell Voe in Shetland

BBC Radio Shetland on Cooke's "untreated blood water" in Scotland

BBC News: "Shetland salmon packing factory leaks 'blood water' into sea"

More troubles for Cooke, with Scottish “blood water” claims

Environmental Event report re. "raw effluent" and overflowing "blood water" at Cooke's Mid Yell processing plant - January 2017

Organic Scamon - The Greenwashing of Toxic Farmed Salmon

Why organic salmon is causing a nasty smell

Concern over organic salmon farms

"Organically Farmed Salmon Is An Oxymoron" (The Organic Standard, 2001)

 

 

 

Organic Scamon: here's what Cooke Aquaculture's salmon from Westray on Orkney look like (as inspected by @marinescotland in May) @The_Orcadian @bbcorkney @OrkneyCouncil
Why does the @SoilAssociation certify salmon farms as 'organic'? @SoilAssocScot @CookeScotland @cookeseafood pic.twitter.com/7FTcnt01zG

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 24, 2022

 

No Way To Salmon Farm Off Papa Westray

 

 

 

 

 

Here's a media advisory published by $camon $cotland (7 September 2022):

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Download media advisory in full with Notes to Editors online here

 

 

Devastation!
Nobody is listening to over 120 valid objections - dumbed down to 82 for no better reason than to diminish the feelings of the Papay folk. This is industrial and toxic in an, as yet, pristine marine environment! Constant faecal effluent equal to 49,500 humans! https://t.co/kHvDfeDblR

— Kate Chatto (@KateChatto1) September 7, 2022

 

 

Respect Papay: 102 objections were filed vs what would be Scotland's largest salmon farm with only one letter of support @OrkneyCouncil @CookeScotland
Approval would be an affront to local democracy! @KristopherLeask @KirstyCooncil @bbcorkney @orkneycom @JohnRossScott @scotgp pic.twitter.com/Xw5KMXPPxS

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 7, 2022

 

 

Orkney's 'Organic' Scam: salmon farming in Orkney - much of it certified as "organic" - more than trebled from 6,369 tonnes in 2011 to a projected 23,104 tonnes in 2021 – an increase of 263% in a decade! https://t.co/EV5TYcXVKD @SoilAssociation @SoilAssociation @scotgp @peterk69 pic.twitter.com/QRaqVJFcxa

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 7, 2022

 

 

Read more via:

Photos: Papa Westray Protest Vs Cooke Makes Waves Off Orkney!

Too Many Cookes - community resistance on Orkney spoils super-sized salmon plan off Papa Westray

Cooke's Organic Scamon Exposed by Gruesome Photos from Orkney!

Organic Scamon - The Soil Association's List of Shame!

Organic Scamon: Ocado Challenged Over Mowi's 'Responsibly' Farmed Salmon - 100% Bullshit not 100% Scottish!

Scottish 'Organic' Scamon Leaps 181% - 4,462 tonnes to 12,528 tonnes from 2019 to 2020!

'Organic' Salmon Fit for the Queen? Not Even Fit for Her Dogs!

Net Tightens on Lawsuits vs 'Salmafia' - Cooke "unable to quash lawsuit over deceptive marketing practices"

Toxic Salmon Corrodes Soil Association's 'Organic' Principles

Scottish salmon is so not organic!

Organic Salmon Belongs in the Bin Not Your Shopping Basket!

Dutch TV slams "organic" salmon

EXPOSED: Scottish 'Organic' Scamon

Organic” farmed salmon – let’s get real

Shetland salmon packing factory leaks 'blood water' into sea

Cooke's Untreated Blood Water is "Gross" says SEPA - "Poor" processing plant pollutes Mid Yell Voe in Shetland

BBC Radio Shetland on Cooke's "untreated blood water" in Scotland

BBC News: "Shetland salmon packing factory leaks 'blood water' into sea"

More troubles for Cooke, with Scottish “blood water” claims

Environmental Event report re. "raw effluent" and overflowing "blood water" at Cooke's Mid Yell processing plant - January 2017

Organic Scamon - The Greenwashing of Toxic Farmed Salmon

Why organic salmon is causing a nasty smell

Concern over organic salmon farms

"Organically Farmed Salmon Is An Oxymoron" (The Organic Standard, 2001)

 

 

No Way To Salmon Farm Off Papa Westray - protestors in the far north of the Orkney Islands tell Canadian giant Cooke to fish off! https://t.co/WULE0dsD5s@CookeScotland @cookeseafood @ScotlandSalmon
Will @OrkneyCouncil listen to the people of Papay? @Liam4Orkney @bbcorkney pic.twitter.com/IIjnxyz5Zi

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 7, 2022

 

 

 

'Organic' Scamon: salmon farming production in Scotland certified as 'organic' quadrupled from 3,104 tonnes in 2011 to 12,528 tonnes in 2020 but the number of sites fell from 10 to 9 (i.e. farms are getting much bigger)! https://t.co/BVJNapYi5M @SoilAssocScot @CookeScotland pic.twitter.com/wZCnURAZKP

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 7, 2022

 

Photos: Papa Westray Protest Vs Cooke Makes Waves Off Orkney!

 

No Way To Salmon Farm Off Papa Westray - protestors in the far north of the Orkney Islands tell Canadian giant Cooke to fish off! https://t.co/WULE0dsD5s@CookeScotland @cookeseafood @ScotlandSalmon
Will @OrkneyCouncil listen to the people of Papay? @Liam4Orkney @bbcorkney pic.twitter.com/IIjnxyz5Zi

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 7, 2022

 

 

Here's photos of a protest by No East Moclett Group on Papa Westray on Monday (5 September 2022) - click on the photo and you should be able to save (please credit 'No East Moclett Group'):

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Respect Papay: 102 objections were filed vs what would be Scotland's largest salmon farm with only one letter of support @OrkneyCouncil @CookeScotland
Approval would be an affront to local democracy! @KristopherLeask @KirstyCooncil @bbcorkney @orkneycom @JohnRossScott @scotgp pic.twitter.com/Xw5KMXPPxS

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 7, 2022

I'm quoted here adding my voice to islanders' objections to a massive new fish farm off Papay. In addition to these concerns is its proximity to a Marine Protected Area. https://t.co/hllNRWvqsS

— Amy Liptrot (@amy_may) September 7, 2022

 

 

The Press & Journal reported (2 September 2022):

 

Contentious Papa Westray salmon farm proposals due before planning committee @OrkneyCouncil @CookeScotland @ArianeBurgessHI @KristopherLeask @PapayRanger @KateChatto1 @amy_may @scotgp https://t.co/PuzUUHE0m6 via @pressjournal

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) September 2, 2022

 

 

 

Salmon Business reported (5 September 2022):

 

 

 

 

$camon $cotland reported (24 August 2022):

 

Organic Scamon: here's what Cooke Aquaculture's salmon from Westray on Orkney look like (as inspected by @marinescotland in May) @The_Orcadian @bbcorkney @OrkneyCouncil
Why does the @SoilAssociation certify salmon farms as 'organic'? @SoilAssocScot @CookeScotland @cookeseafood pic.twitter.com/7FTcnt01zG

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 24, 2022

 

 

A damning inspection report recently published by the Scottish Government's Fish Health Inspectorate highlights the gruesome nature of Cooke Aquaculture - a company shamefully certified by the Soil Association as "organic" and accredited as 'welfare friendly' via RSPCA Assured.   

 

 

 

 

 

In what warped world can these fish be truly marketed as "responsibly farmed" and "responsibly sourced"?

 

 

 

EXPOSED - the rotten underbelly of Cooke Aquaculture - why is @rspcaassured & @SoilAssociation greenwashing welfare abuse? @cookeseafood @CookeScotland @ScotlandSalmon @AnimalOutlookhttps://t.co/czDvJTEusf @The_Orcadian @OrkneyCouncil @orkneycom pic.twitter.com/Hl92ROBBqM

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 25, 2022

 

 

 

The harsh reality of welfare abuse inside Cooke Aquaculture's salmon farms is a world removed from their PR image.

 

 

 

 

When undercover activists infiltrated a Cooke Aquaculture salmon farm in Maine it exposed a 'sea of suffering':

 

 

 

 

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Too Many Cookes - community resistance on Orkney spoils super-sized salmon plan off Papa Westray

Cooke's Organic Scamon Exposed by Gruesome Photos from Orkney!

Organic Scamon - The Soil Association's List of Shame!

Organic Scamon: Ocado Challenged Over Mowi's 'Responsibly' Farmed Salmon - 100% Bullshit not 100% Scottish!

Scottish 'Organic' Scamon Leaps 181% - 4,462 tonnes to 12,528 tonnes from 2019 to 2020!

'Organic' Salmon Fit for the Queen? Not Even Fit for Her Dogs!

Net Tightens on Lawsuits vs 'Salmafia' - Cooke "unable to quash lawsuit over deceptive marketing practices"

Toxic Salmon Corrodes Soil Association's 'Organic' Principles

Scottish salmon is so not organic!

Organic Salmon Belongs in the Bin Not Your Shopping Basket!

Dutch TV slams "organic" salmon

EXPOSED: Scottish 'Organic' Scamon

Organic” farmed salmon – let’s get real

Shetland salmon packing factory leaks 'blood water' into sea

Cooke's Untreated Blood Water is "Gross" says SEPA - "Poor" processing plant pollutes Mid Yell Voe in Shetland

BBC Radio Shetland on Cooke's "untreated blood water" in Scotland

BBC News: "Shetland salmon packing factory leaks 'blood water' into sea"

More troubles for Cooke, with Scottish “blood water” claims

Environmental Event report re. "raw effluent" and overflowing "blood water" at Cooke's Mid Yell processing plant - January 2017

Organic Scamon - The Greenwashing of Toxic Farmed Salmon

Why organic salmon is causing a nasty smell

Concern over organic salmon farms

"Organically Farmed Salmon Is An Oxymoron" (The Organic Standard, 2001)

 

Community opposition is building on Papa Westray to Cooke Aquaculture's super-sized salmon farm in Orkney @bbcorkney https://t.co/NSIEVfAxBF (starts at 9 mins 50 secs)
Over 100 objections to @cookescotland @cookeseafood @OrkneyCouncil @ArianeBurgessHI @scotgp @PapayRanger

— Don Staniford (@TheGAAIA) August 24, 2022