Scottish Fish Farm Production Survey 2025

6. Summary

Rainbow trout

The production of rainbow trout decreased by 56% in 2025 to 3,592 tonnes and was directed at the table (90%) and restocking (10%) markets. The decrease was largely due to a major rainbow trout producer being acquired by a salmon producer, with production redirected towards salmon and smolt production.

The overall number of staff employed by the sector decreased by 18 people (17%) to 88. There was a decrease in the productivity of the sector to 40.8 tonnes per person.

In 2025, the number of eyed ova laid down to hatch was 3.4 million and nearly all were triploid stock. The proportion of ova from GB broodstock increased to 64% of the total. Suppliers within the EU accounted for 65% of imported ova and remained the largest source of imports. In addition to GB produced ova, the sector continues to supplement domestic supplies with imported ova. No producers imported part-grown rainbow trout into Scotland from Northern Ireland in 2025, reflecting the shift by a major producer to salmon and smolt production.

Atlantic salmon

In 2025, total Atlantic salmon production increased by 5,836 tonnes (3%) reaching 197,836 tonnes. This increase was driven by higher harvest weights and increased production of both grilse and year 2 salmon. Survival to harvest rose from 61.8% in the 2022 year class to 68.8% in the 2023 year class. The number of staff directly employed on the farms increased by 48 (4%). Overall, there was a decrease in productivity, in tonnes produced per person, from 141 to 140. The trend towards concentrating production in larger sites was maintained with 91% of production being concentrated in the sites producing over 1,000 tonnes per annum. The harvest forecast for 2026 is estimated to be 199,200 tonnes.

During 2025, there was an increase in the number of ova produced to 63.7 million. The number of ova laid down to hatch increased by 1% to 90.5 million. 2025 saw 43% of ova being imported with the remaining 57% being derived from GB broodstock (an increase of 40% on the 2024 figure). Smolt production increased to 53.5 million, with 51% being produced as S½ smolts and 49% as S1 smolts. The number of staff directly employed on freshwater sites increased by 39 (14%) in 2025 to 319 staff while productivity increased to 167,567 smolts per person. Projections for 2026 suggest that more smolts will be produced than in 2025, followed by a further increase in 2027.

Other Species

Production of brown/sea trout decreased to 14 tonnes in 2025. Halibut production occurred in 2025 but the figure cannot be shown without revealing the production of individual companies. In 2025, wrasse continued to be reared for use as a biological control for parasites in the marine Atlantic salmon farming sector. No cleaner fish production was reported in 2025, although juvenile fish production activities continued. In 2025, the total number of staff employed in the production of other species increased by one person (4%) to 29.