Retailer rules out Tasmanian salmon ban – for now

A group of activists in Australia have failed to stop the large Woolworth retail chain in Australia selling Tasmanian salmon.

They claim that salmon farming practices in Tasmania’s Macquarie Harbour are threatening the rare Maugean skate which now only exists in that area.

Marine biologists estimate that fewer than 200 of the skate remain and their future existence as a species remains in serious doubt.

The campaign is being led by a group of 120 marine activists who say that salmon farming is a major threat to the future existence of this prehistoric fish.

Shareholders at the Woolworths’ annual general meeting in Sydney were asked to vote on a resolution calling on the company to no longer sell salmon from the harbour from next year, but they rejected the demand – at least for the time being.

However, a ban on salmon fishing has not been totally ruled out by the retailer.

Despite its name the Woolworth shops have no historical connection with the famous F.W. Woolworth store chain that once operated in the US and UK. The similarly named Woolworths supermarkets in Australia (and later New Zealand) are operated by a separate company. It did, however, take the name from the original company, which had not been registered in Australia at the time.

Maugean skate

Decision on endangered fish is delayed

Woolworths Group chairman Scott Perkins told the AGM the company was waiting for the results of government studies before making a further decision about sourcing farmed salmon from Macquarie Harbour, which produces about 10,000 tons of salmon a year.

“The unsustainability of supply from Macquarie Harbour is a matter we’re taking very seriously,” he said.

The condition of this rare skate species is currently being assessed by the Australian federal government.

Last week the industry body, Salmon Tasmania, expressed concern that Australia’s Threatened Species Conservation Committee had been granted an extension to 30 October 2025 to come up with its recommendations on the Macquarie Harbour issue. This means that the future of the Tasmanian salmon industry will not be decided until after Australia’s next federal elections.

Luke Martin, CEO, Salmon Tasmania said: “We are frustrated but not surprised by this outcome.

“There has now been a flood of scientific evidence presented to the Threatened Species Conservation Committee showing the situation for the skate is very different to some of the initial advice they had been reviewing.

“Macquarie Harbour is the healthiest it’s been in over a decade and the captive breeding program is proving an early success.

“On top of that, the population sampling that informed that Committee’s initial thinking has now been proven to be very flawed.

“Everyone is determined to secure the future of the Maugean skate, but decisions must be grounded in accurate information on the population numbers and the many potential reasons for the species’ long term decline.”