New strategy to boost Scotland’s seafood sector

The Scottish Government has published its first strategy for the seafood sector, detailing how the fishing and aquaculture sectors are being supported to remain internationally competitive and to expand the seafood workforce in some of Scotland’s most rural and coastal areas.

The strategy also highlights ongoing work to monitor and manage the marine space to help increase consumer confidence in the sustainability of Scottish seafood.

In addition, as a key part of the government’s Fisheries Management Strategy, changes are being introduced to licence conditions for Scottish fishing vessels to require greater landings of highly valuable fish species into Scotland, thereby benefiting onshore industries like processors and hauliers.

The latest fisheries statistics, published earlier this month, show Scotland’s sea fish and shellfish industry recovered in 2021 from the Covid-19 pandemic, but had not yet returned to pre-Brexit levels.