The publication details statistics on the employment, production and value of shellfish from Scottish Shellfish Farms. It is structured to follow industry trends within the mussel, Pacific oyster, native oyster, queen scallop and king scallop sectors. Some statistics are given for the 10-year period 2002-2011. The main findings are:
- Production tonnage of mussels fell by three per cent in 2011, from 7,199 tonnes in 2010 to 6,995 tonnes. This is due to the variation in spat fall in time and place over the last few years, and other environmental variables in 2011.
- Production of Pacific oysters increased by four per cent from the 2010 total of 3,008,000 shells to 3,136,000 in 2011. This is the highest number of Pacific oysters produced in Scotland since 2006.
- Employment levels fell by 14 per cent to 343 people from a 2010 total of 399. This is due to a number businesses that deregistered in 2011.
- Overall estimated value of the industry increased to 9.8 million from the 2010 total of 8.3 million.
