Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024
This report is based on the returns of an annual survey questionnaire sent to all active authorised fish farming businesses in Scotland during 2024. Statistics on employment, production and value are presented.
1. Rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)
Production survey information was collected from all 17 companies actively involved in rainbow trout production, farming 46 active sites. This figure represents the entire sector operating in Scotland.
Production
Chart 1: Annual production (tonnes) of rainbow trout during 2015-2024.
Chart 1 illustrates the annual production of rainbow trout in Scotland over the period 2015 to 2024. The upper dashed and dotted blue line shows total production of rainbow trout in tonnes. The solid dark blue line shows the total rainbow trout production for the table trade while the lower solid dark red line shows the total rainbow trout production for the restocking trade.
Production decreased in 2024 by 1,087 tonnes, a decrease of 12%, to 8,171 tonnes. Production in 2025 is projected to be 4,349 tonnes, this is a sector estimate based on stocks currently being on-grown.
Production for the table in 2024 was 7,695 tonnes, a decrease of 1,098 tonnes (12%) on the 2023 total. This accounted for 94% of the total rainbow trout production, a decrease on the proportion to that produced in 2023. Also, a decrease in the number of fish in the small, medium and large size ranges was observed. These data are detailed in the Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 1b.
In 2024, production for the restocking of angling waters increased to 476 tonnes representing an increase of 11 tonnes (2%) on the 2023 total. This accounted for 6% of total rainbow trout production in 2024. These figures represent the tonnage of fish supplied to angling waters for restocking purposes; they do not account for the catch taken by anglers. There was a decrease in the number of fish in the small and large size ranges but an increase in the number in the medium size range during 2024. These data are detailed in the Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 1b.
Data Source: Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 1a, 1b and 1c.
Production by Site
Chart 2: Total number of rainbow trout sites grouped by tonnage produced during 2015-2024.
Bar chart 2 shows the number of sites that fall into each production grouping. The four categories were 1-25 tonnes, 26-100 tonnes, 101-200 tonnes and more than 200 tonnes.
Production was reported from 29 of the 46 active sites. The number of producers in the 101-200 tonnes size bracket increased by one, while those in the <1-25 and >200 tonnes size brackets decreased by one. The number of sites in the 26-100 tonnes size bracket remained the same as in 2023. These figures do not include those sites specialising in the production of ova or young fish for on-growing.
Data Source: Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 2.
Production by Method
Chart 3: Total rainbow trout production (tonnes) by production method in 2024.
Chart 3 presents the total volume of rainbow trout production in Scotland for the year 2024, categorised by production method. The blue bars show total rainbow trout production by freshwater production methods and the orange bars show the total rainbow trout production by seawater production methods. The dark grey bar shows total rainbow trout production by all production methods.
Seawater production accounted for 4,537 tonnes (56%) and freshwater production the remaining 3,634 tonnes (44%). Production from freshwater pens increased during 2024 while production from seawater pens, freshwater tanks and hatcheries and from freshwater ponds and raceways decreased.
Data Source: Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 3.
Company and Site Data
In 2024, the number of companies authorised by the Scottish Government and actively engaged in rainbow trout production was 17. The number of sites registered and in production was 46.
Data Source: Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 4.
Staffing and Productivity
Chart 4: Total number of staff employed in rainbow trout production 2015-2024.
Chart 4 shows total number of staff employed in rainbow trout production over the ten-year period from 2015 to 2024. The data are represented by a solid dark blue line which shows the combined total of full-time and part-time staff each year.
Chart 5: Number of full-time and part-time staff employed in rainbow trout production in 2024, by gender.
Chart 5 displays the number of staff employed in rainbow trout production by gender and employment status (full-time and part-time). The data are represented using dark blue bars for each category.
Note: FT = Full-time and PT = Part-time
In 2024, the total number of staff decreased by 30 (22%), resulting in 106 total staff. This reduction included 18 fewer full-time staff and 12 fewer part-time staff. Out of 106 staff, 95 were male (90%) and 11 were female (10%). Productivity, measured as tonnes produced per person, increased by 13% in 2024 to 77.1 tonnes per person, with no distinction between full and part-time employees being made for this calculation.
Data Source: Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 5.
Production by Area
Table 1 presents a summary of rainbow trout production across Scotland in 2024. Production areas were North, East, West, South and All Scotland. The data includes the number of active sites, production volumes (in tonnes) for table trade, restocking trade, total production and the mean production per site.
| Area | No. of sites | Table production (tonnes) | Restocking production (tonnes) | Total production (tonnes) | Mean tonnes per sites |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| North | 10 | 3,222 | 37 | 3,259 | 325.9 |
| East | 9 | 734 | 167 | 901 | 100.1 |
| West | 18 | 3,735 | 3 | 3,738 | 207.7 |
| South | 9 | 4 | 269 | 273 | 30.3 |
| All Scotland | 46 | 7,695 | 476 | 8,171 | 177.6 |
Note: From 2018, the North area also included production and staff from the Western Isles and from 2021 production and staff from Orkney was also included.
Chart 6: Total number of staff employed in rainbow trout production by area.
Chart 6 shows number of staff employed in rainbow trout production across different production areas in Scotland during 2024. The data are represented using dark blue bars for each area, North, East, West, South and All Scotland.
Productivity was greatest in the North at 325.9 tonnes per site and 362.1 tonnes per person.
Data Source: Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 6.
Type and Source of Ova Laid Down
Chart 7: Total number (in millions) of rainbow trout eyed ova and imported ova laid down to hatch in 2015-2024.
Chart 7 displays two lines representing the number of rainbow trout ova used in Scotland from 2015-2024. The upper line, solid dark blue, shows the total number of ova laid down to hatch while the lower line, blue dashed and dotted, shows the total number of imported ova laid down to hatch.
In 2024, the total number of eyed ova laid down to hatch increased by 0.3 million (7%) on the 2023 total. Ninety-seven percent of ova laid down to hatch in 2024 were triploid ova. Imported ova all came from the Northern hemisphere during 2024. The proportion of ova sourced from Great Britain (GB) broodstock increased, accounting for 50% of the total. In addition to GB produced ova the sector has a reliance on imported ova. Data on the importation of ova into Scotland are also available from the health certificates and are shown in Chart 7. Any discrepancy between the figures in Chart 6 and 7 is due to data being obtained from two independent sources.
A full breakdown of the ova types and source can be found in the: Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 7 and Table 8.
Imports from Official Import Health Certificates
Chart 8: Total number (in millions) of rainbow trout ova imported into Scotland from outwith GB during 2015-2024.
Chart 8 shows a solid dark blue line graph for the total number of rainbow trout ova (in millions) imported into Scotland over a 10 year period, 2015-2024.
In 2024, official import health certificates show 2.2 million ova imported into Scotland from outwith GB. No change was observed in the import volume compared to 2023. The number of imports and their source country are detailed in the Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 9a.
Suppliers from within the European Union (EU) accounted for 58% of ova imported into Scotland during 2024, with suppliers from the USA accounting for the remaining 42%. No producers imported part grown rainbow trout into Scotland from Northern Ireland during 2024 which had been the trend in recent years. Further data on the seasonal variation in ova numbers and sources of imported ova into Scotland from outwith GB during 2024 can be found in the: Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 9b. While numbers and sources of fish imported into Scotland from outwith GB can be found in the: Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 9c.
Trade in Fry and Fingerlings
Chart 9: Total number (in millions) of rainbow trout fry and fingerlings traded during 2015-2024.
Chart 9 illustrates the total number of rainbow trout fry and fingerlings traded annually from 2015 to 2024, measured in millions. The solid dark blue line shows the total number of fish bought while the dashed and dotted blue line shows the number of fish sold.
The established trade between hatcheries and on-growing farms continued in 2024. Some companies specialised in fry and fingerling production. The total number of fry and fingerlings bought, 3.1 million, increased by 8% and the number sold, 3.4 million, increased by 5%. The majority (99%) of bought fry/fingerlings were triploid fish. The disparity between supply and demand is due to trade with England and Wales. More detailed data relating to fry and fingerling trade can be found in the: Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 10.
Use of Vaccines
Vaccines continued to be used as a preventative treatment against enteric redmouth disease (ERM), a potentially serious bacterial infection, caused by Yersinia ruckeri. Vaccination is generally carried out as a bath treatment at the fingerling stage, although some vaccines are administered by intra-peritoneal injection. A total of 3.1 million fish were vaccinated on 20 sites.
Data Source: Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 11.
Organic Production
Of the 46 sites recorded as being active in rainbow trout production in 2024, none were certified as organic.
Escapes
In 2024 there was one incident reported where the company confirmed there was no loss of fish.
Escapes data from previous annual survey reports are available: Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2024, Supplementary Tables, Table 46.
Contact
Email: MD.Productionsurvey@gov.scot