Mowi loses 73,600 fish at exposed site
Mowi Scotland lost 73,600 salmon after storm Brendan damaged a net pen at the company’s Colonsay site.
The company, which revealed the loss on its website and has reported it to the regulator, said the fish were an average weight of 1.9kg.
A post-storm inspection showed structural failure of the pen, causing a tear in the netting. Other net pens on site are confirmed secure.
‘We are very disappointed that this structural failure has occurred,’ said David MacGillivray, Mowi’s regional farm manager.
‘Despite storm Brendan severely battering many parts of Scotland’s coast last week and Colonsay being a remote and particularly exposed location, we expect our modern infrastructure to withstand these challenges.’
The farm’s net pens exceed both the Scottish and Norwegian technical standards for net pen design. The company and equipment supplier are immediately reviewing the net pen’s manufacturing process.
No staff were injured during storm Brendan.
