This item was published during the term of a previous administration that ended in April 2007
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Report on farmed shellfish production
21/10/2003
The overall production of farmed shellfish in Scotland rose by 6 per cent in 2002.
This was the key finding of the Scottish Shellfish Farms Annual Production Survey. The survey which is carried out by the Fisheries Research Services Marine Laboratory on behalf of SEERAD provides data on the production of farmed shellfish and company and employment figures.
The main points of the 2002 survey are :
• Overall production increased by 6.2 per cent from 3,350 tonnes to 3,558 tonnes
• Regional mussel production in Shetland increased by more than 50% to 1,246 tonnes
• Declines in the production of Pacific oysters and queens can be attributed to environmental influences and variation in natural settlement of spat
• Efficiences in husbandry and marketing practices continue to reduce production costs
• The industry employs 128 full-time and 219 part time workers
• The market for all species was buoyant and prices remained stable throughout the year