Happy MegaFishFarm Free 2025!

Dear Friends and Supporters,

It’s hard to believe that we have been on this journey for exactly two years now…but it seems as if we are soon to find ourselves back on the starting blocks.  The Pre-Application period for Loch Long Salmon’s Loch Linnhe proposal is due to expire in February, at which point they will be required to resubmit.  The silver lining to this delay is that we have been able to continue with our research, extending our range of contacts around the world, engaging with marine scientists and industry players whilst strengthening our links with support groups and related charities.

No doubt all of you reading this will be all too aware of the well publicised environmental, mortality, welfare and unsustainable feed issues facing the open net industry. Our research continues to conclude that none of these issues will be anywhere near satisfactorily addressed by the proposed semi closed containment cages. We therefore make no apology for continuing to highlight them within that context, and would like to draw your attention to a film by Francesco de Augustinis, which was launched last week at the Oxford Real Farming Conference as part of a debate entitled ”Can Farmed Salmon Ever Be Sustainable?”.

Francesco spent two days filming with us as part of his Scotland tour, and two of our team members were able to contribute their thoughts.  At website www.one-earth.it/en/dying-lochs/ you can find more info about the short doc and watch a preview. If you are interested in spreading the word with a community screening, please let us know and we can arrange this with Francesco.

Meanwhile, James Appleton has been working on the final edits of his film which will focus entirely on our campaign to save our beautiful Loch Linnhe. We are hoping to be able to launch this in the next couple of months, but please be patient as there is an amazing amount of work involved and James is doing much of it voluntarily, for which we are hugely grateful!

Here he is filming John Aitchison, nature documentary producer and cameraman - this time on the other side of the lens - sharing his extensive knowledge about the current state of the fish farming industry on the West Coast of Scotland.  John made a significant contribution last year to the Rural Affairs and Islands Committee consultations on whether there had been any improvements made in the industry since the damning Griggs Report of 2022.

…And here he is, interviewing Rhianna Rees of the Scottish Seaweed Industry Association. Listening in to what Rhianna had to say was fascinating, both about the economic importance of the seaweed industry on the West Coast in the past, and the Association’s vision for its sustainable future. So many new possibilities are being discovered for food, health and cosmetic products – even as a substitute for plastic packaging!

On that optimistic, good news note, it only remains for us to wish you all a Very Happy MegaFishFarm Free 2025!

With Best Wishes from

The Long Live Loch Linnhe Team