Salmon farming giant Mowi’s profits halved as disease hits harvests

‘Biological challenges’ have hit production as campaigners speak out over proliferation of salmon farms in Scottish waters
Lizzie Roberts
, Mary Wright
The Times
Mowi, which operates in more than 50 locations around Scotland, including the Loch Leven salmon farm, said its harvests were down by 10 per cent
Mowi, which operates in more than 50 locations around Scotland, including the Loch Leven salmon farm, said its harvests were down by 10 per cent
MATTHEW LLOYD/BLOOMBERG/GETTY IMAGES
Lizzie Roberts
, Mary Wright
The Times

A disease which causes skin lesions, ulcers and in the majority of cases death among fish has contributed to the halving of profits at a multimillion-pound salmon farming giant.

Mowi operates more than 50 locations around Scotland, consisting of smolt hatcheries, freshwater farms, cleaner fish hatcheries, seawater farms, primary processing units and a feed production factory.

Its latest financial report for the year to December 2022 shows that Mowi Scotland made an operating profit of £27 million, down from £54 million in 2021.

“These performance indicators show a decrease in operational results in 2022 in comparison to 2021, predominantly driven by a decrease in harvest volumes as a result of higher mortalities and the impact of an SRS outbreak (salmonid rickettsial septicaemia) and micro jellyfish