[ad_1]
Shetland’s gradually rekindling coastal tourism sector drove a 40 per cent jump in marine jobs in the space of a year, according to government statistics published on Friday.
The figures, which cover 2023, also show that 150 jobs were lost in the fishing sector, while salmon farming saw a slight increase.
Industry representatives welcomed the figures as an “economic success story” for Shetland and other remote, coastal parts of Scotland.
They come as the salmon sector locks horns with campaigners over the exact economic contribution of salmon farming to rural Scottish communities.
These figures do not include winder supply chain jobs, according to a report published by Salmon Scotland last month. A separate report from campaign group Wildfish said instead that they overstate salmon farming’s value add by ignoring the fishing jobs which aquaculture displaces.
Shetland remained the second most productive region in the nation for wild-caught fish, landing more than £130 million and adding an estimated £87.6m to the isles economy (a six per cent increase on the year before).
Fishing lost more than 150 jobs – evidence of a trend the Shetland Fishermen’s Association (SFA) have warned of across Scotland as the price of boats and quota both rise.
“The industry can no longer rest on its laurels and expect young Shetlanders to come knocking,” said SFA executive officer Daniel Lawson.
“We have to make sure they understand that fishing continues to offer them a path to a good living, a good way of life, and the continuation of a proud tradition that benefits the place where they bide.”
Meanwhile, turnover from Shetland’s mussel farms reached its highest level since at least 2018, just shy of £10m.
Shetland’s farmers produce more than four of every five mussels in the UK, and have been recognised in national sustainable seafood awards.
Salmon farms have the highest turnover by far of all three seafood sectors, despite a £27m drop in 2023.
Late in 2022 farms across Scotland jellyfish blooms and mass die off events. Separate data solely covering the aquaculture sector suggests that this dip may have been recovered last year.
“These figures confirm that Scottish salmon continues to generate vital wealth for the country, and especially for our Highland and islands communities,” said Salmon Scotland chief executive Tavish Scott.
“However, they only tell part of our economic success story, given that the sector also supports a nationwide supply chain and is attracting record exports and rising consumer demand.”
Taking that supply chain into account, salmon contributes £91 million to Shetland according to a Salmon Scotland report last month.
Earlier this month campaign group Wildfish published a rival report arguing instead that the sector does not “pay its way – with overstated benefits, underestimated costs, and substantial public subsidies masking its true economic and environmental footprint”.
While Salmon Scotland focussed on supply chain jobs created by the sector, Wildfish looked to quantify how salmon farms displace other sectors like fishing and coastal tourism.
A similar debate played out in Holyrood last week, with Conservative, Green and Labour MSPs questioning the government about recent disease figures and climate change.
Meanwhile, Shetland’s MSP Beatrice Wishart took to the chamber lto defend Shetland’s salmon farmers from those “ideologically opposed” to the sector, and to tout what she described as “the improving trend in survival rates”.
This October was the second most deadly month on record for Shetland salmon farms. 250,000 fish died from disease as a result of warming water, according to The Shetland Times’ analysis of government figures.
Do you want to respond to this article? If so, click here to submit your thoughts and they may be published in print.
[ad_2]