Healthier Fish Working Group

1. Healthier Fish Working Group Recommendations to the Ministerial Group on Aquaculture

2. The group’s remit Support the sustainable growth of the industry by making recommendations designed to bring about: • “single year class stocking, synchronous treatment and fallowing of appropriate scale management areas”; and • “a national system for the collection of sea-lice data”. The group’s work has been given additional impetus by the emergence of multi-resistance to sea-lice treatments in other jurisdictions.

3. The Process A group was established consisting of representatives from individual fish-farm companies, producer organisations and associations, wild fish interests, SEPA and Marine Scotland. It and its sub-groups have worked intensively over the last 9 months to produce a series of recommendations for this group. The group’s initial thinking was tested in meetings in Shetland, Orkney, Oban, Stornoway and Ullapool.

4. Farm Management Agreements The group believed that Farm Management Agreements (FMAs) are the best means of encouraging cooperation across areas. In future Farm Management Agreements will cover: • Stocking • Fallowing • Biosecurity • Management practices including the control of sea-lice • Information sharing

5. Farm Management Agreements At the moment there is no legal requirement for operators to enter into FMAs, and there is no arbitration system for settling disputes regarding the content of such agreements. Recommendation 1: The Scottish Government should require that all operators in the marine environment enter into Farm Management Agreements. Recommendation 2: The Scottish Government should work with the SSPO to put on a legal footing the independent Arbitration process proposed by the SSPO, ensuring fairness to all finfish producers.

6. Sea-lice treatment efficacy and mortality reporting It is proposed that delousing failures should be reported to Marine Scotland. “Failure” is defined in the paper already circulated to the MGA. It is also proposed that mortality events which exceed specified thresholds should be reported to Marine Scotland.

7. Sea-lice treatment efficacy and mortality reporting Recommendation 4: that these requirements for reporting of non-efficacious treatments to Marine Scotland be adopted Recommendation 5: that Marine Scotland work to further develop information exchange with VMD. Recommendation 6: that the specified mortality reporting requirements to Marine Scotland be adopted.

8. Sea-lice treatment efficacy and mortality reporting It is important to note that the main development in this respect is the creation of the SSPO’s own sea-lice data collection system. This will lead to the publication of aggregated sea-lice Levels over 6 areas around Scotland. Crucially, it will be an excellent source of information to farmers as they seek to develop their Farm Management Agreements.

9. Inspections During the group’s discussions with the industry it was suggested that some proportion of site visits by the Fish Health Inspectorate should be unannounced. Recommendation 7: that the Fish Health Inspectorate commence some unannounced visits to fish-farms

10. Conclusion Simple, concise recommendations have been reached following an intensive period of consultation and informed discussion. It is to the industry’s credit that it recognises the paramount importance of fish health issues, and is constantly striving to make improvements.