The young ones
Martin Jaffa
Since I have been involved with the salmon farming industry, it has undergone much change. I had already been involved with aquaculture for some years when salmon farming came onto my radar. Although it may now be hard for some to believe, when their experience of the industry has been limited to recent years, but there were once 126 different farming companies operating in Scotland. There are now just seven key players.
The reasons given for the changes over the last thirty years depend on who is speaking.
One of the most common narratives given by the anti-salmon farming critics is that Norwegian companies have bought out the Scottish industry so they can produce salmon without the constraints of the tougher regulations in Norway. This is of course nonsense.
The changes in the Scottish salmon industry were highly predictable. The early days of the industry were a bit like the Klondike gold rush with many believing that these was money to be made, and there was. The rise of salmon farming coincided with Mrs Thatcher’s boom years in which the new rich wanted the trappings of wealth and this included highly sought-after Scottish salmon. Farmers could sell all they could produce at a good price.
At the end of the 1980s, the industry encountered a problem in the marketplace. Farmers had been increasing production to meet the increasing demand, but production had increased faster than the market and almost overnight, prices lost their shine. Prices even fell below the cost of production. The Klondike era was over, and farming became a serious business. Many small companies did not think the new look salmon industry was for them, whilst others recognised that the future depended on a larger scale production. In the subsequent years, a lot of companies decided to sell whilst other decided to buy. Consolidation was very much the order of the day, leading up to the current state of the industry dominated by fully integrated production in common with other forms of livestock production.
One aspect of the industry that has been lost is not just the variety of the companies, but the variety of individuals involved in farming. The industry has turned somewhat corporate and whilst there are many positives to come out of this form of structure, one aspect that has been lost is the individualism, especially when it comes to expressing a different point of view. This is why readers of Fish Farmer magazine are stuck reading the views of older industry stalwarts like myself and Nick Joy.
It’s becoming increasingly obvious that what is missing from the salmon farming industry are representatives of younger generations who are not only the leaders of tomorrow but also the young articulate face of salmon farming who are willing to stand up and speak out to defend the industry.
What the salmon farming industry needs. and needs now, is an industry ‘Young Leadership Group’ with representatives not just of the farming companies but all the supply areas too. The salmon farming industry has accumulated a mass of talent within its operations, which has not been effectively utilised to benefit the industry as a whole. Of course, the farming companies have their own interests to pursue but we also need a unified industry voice that can stand up to the criticisms and negative publicity.
Other sectors have recognised the need for young people to engage. The National Farmers Union operate a ‘Young Farmer Ambassador Programme’ that brings together up to twelve young people to become influential members of the NFU and put their own stamp on the future
of British farming. It also enables the group to network with like-minded individuals and to experience new aspects of the sector including engagement with the media, supply chain and politics.
Seafish also run a ‘Young Seafood Leaders Network’ aimed at bringing together many talented professionals from across the sector with the prospect of leading change in the industry. Seafish say that the group are the future stars of the industry. Where are the future stars of the salmon farming industry? Currently, they seem hidden away to everyone except their colleagues.
Experience is certainly a valuable commodity in the world of business. Certainly, experience is vital when it comes to specialised food production like salmon farming but at the same time youth and enthusiasm are commodities that should be encouraged to the benefit of the wider industry.
The annual Aquaculture Awards have a category of ‘Rising Star’ yet none of the nominations for 2020 were of people working directly in salmon farming. Is this a reflection of the lack of talent in the industry today? Absolutely not. The talented and enthusiastic young people working in the industry today need wider recognition than a rising star award, which is why the industry should urgently invest in a ‘Young Leadership Group’. Investing in young people is very much akin to investing in the future success of the industry.
“
It’s becoming increasingly obvious that what is missing from the salmon farming industry are representatives of generations” younger