Meanwhile Mowi Consumer Products UK (CPUK) in Rosyth, Fife, is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. Starting with a team of 43 in 2015, Mowi CPUK now has up to 1,000 during peak production periods. Through investment in new technology and the upskilling of its workforce, Rosyth is now the single largest salmon processing plant in the UK. £30 million has been invested in the state-of-the-art food factory, enabling the business to produce over a quarter of a million healthy meals each week.
Looking ahead, Mowi has exciting plans currently in development for 2025 and beyond. Among the plans are its recently announced purchase of Sanda Island, where it hopes to establish a salmon farm as well as reinvigorate the island and develop its potential as a tourism destination.
Mowi's other plans for 2025 include:
- The completion of the next phase of the new processing facility upgrade at Blar Mhor .
- The opening of a state-of-the-art broodstock facility at Ardessie.
- The official opening of Mowi’s Inchmore Visitor Experience, which will enable a range of stakeholders to learn more about the company and the aquaculture industry,
- The official opening of An Faire Mor community housing on Colonsay, which Mowi has supported the Colonsay Community Development Company with.
- The opening of a new high energy farm off South Uist, at Stulaigh South, following the granting of planning permission in December. The farm will create seven new jobs, operate 6x200m pens and hold a maximum biomass of 3,000 tonnes of salmon.
- The ASC certification of all Mowi farms in Scotland by the end of the year.
“All of us who have participated in this great Scottish success story should take time to reflect. From those pioneering fish farmers 60 years ago putting the first smolts into the sea, to those innovating within our business and contributing to the wider industry today, we can all take pride to have been part of 60 years of Mowi Scotland,” said Hadfield.
“Sixty years ago, pioneering fish farmers stocked the first generation of farmed salmonids into Lochailort,” explains Ben Hadfield, MD of Mowi Scotland.
“I guess you can imagine their days were full of hard work, optimism and problem solving at every turn. Sixty years on, our days are still full of hard work, optimism and problem solving at every turn!
“What has changed, however, is the scale of our business and its positive impact throughout the Highlands and Islands. Thanks to the hard work and determination of all our colleagues, past and present, we have built one of Scotland’s largest companies which celebrates its 60th anniversary with the aim of harvesting over 70,000 tonnes of premium Scottish salmon in 2025.”
In addition to creating employment in many of Scotland’s most rural locations, Mowi is proud to support these communities in other ways, whether it’s through helping with much needed housing, assisting stricken vessels, sponsoring local sports teams, cleaning up coastlines, attending careers events at schools, bringing the Mowi Salmon Wagon to local events to raise funds for good causes, or providing salmon to food banks.
Congratulating Mowi on the anniversary, Tavish Scott, chief executive of trade body Salmon Scotland, said: “Since the first salmon were put to sea in Lochailort, Mowi Scotland has gone from strength to strength, becoming the biggest producer of Scottish salmon and one of the biggest employers and contributors to the Highlands and Islands’ economy.
“This scale has enabled the company to drive innovation in the sector, with a string of ‘firsts’ helping to transform salmon farming from a cottage industry to the modern, science-led, and globally renowned sector it is today.”
From Mowi’s farms to its processing facilities in Fort William and Rosyth, Mowi salmon is then sold to consumers at the UK’s biggest retailers and exported around the world.
