Hebrides Harvest - Best Practice

Hebrides Harvest Quality Standards and Certification

Best Practice

We pride ourselves in producing the highest quality seafood with a remarkable taste and texture, from “the edge of the world”. Our unusual climate makes for ideal harvesting conditions - Hebrides Harvest fish are reared in some of the finest, clearest waters in Scotland. Our farms are located in sea lochs with strong tidal activity and the strong Atlantic currents in which the Salmon swim contributes to a robust flesh.

Stocking Density

These are central to good husbandry and our organic sites have stocking densities which are lower than the conventional levels for salmon:–

Organic 10kg per m3

Conventional 15kg per m3 (maximum 20kg per m3)

This stocking density of 10kg per cubic metre is in line with Soil Association requirements i.e.

1% fish 99% water

100% less of conventional stocking density

Our stocking densities reflect our commitment to fish welfare and provide our salmon with plenty of room to swim around in which contributes to a firmer flesh and high quality salmon.

Production

We aim to supply all our customers, new and existing, with high quality organic salmon and do so by keeping our production levels realistic and as consistent as possible. We therefore only produce 1500 tonnes per annum which equates to 28 tonnes per week and keep our harvesting days to three per week.

1500 Tonnes per annum
28 Tonnes per week
Harvest days: Monday, Wednesday, Friday
Delivery days: Wednesday, Friday, Monday

We may have lower production rates that other salmon farming companies, but we believe that by doing so, we can ensure customer satisfaction with a well-managed supply.

Fallowing

We have a Site Rotation and Fallowing Management Plan which ensures that all our sites are given the necessary fallow period after every use. A fallow period allows the sea bed to recover by the natural processes of nutrient cycling. Each of our sites is fallowed for 12 months which is over and above the necessary legislative requirement of a minimum of 6 weeks. This ensures that our sites are given plenty of time to rejuvenate, evidence of which can be confirmed through benthic analysis surveys carried out independently at each site. These surveys provide information on aquaculture species and diversity in and around our fish farm cages, specifically how these species have been able to thrive on the nutrient enrichment of the sea bed during each production phase.

Diet

The organic feed we use is certified by the Soil Association which is renowned as having the highest standards in the organic farming sector. These stringent standards ensure that at least 50% of feed ingredients of aquatic origin must be derived from by-products of wild caught fish for human consumption. The balance must be derived from approved sustainable fisheries and all other feed ingredients must be of approved organic origin.

We only buy organic feed from suppliers who have demonstrated that particular attention has been paid to balancing the nutritional requirements of the fish in line with this strict code of practice.

Fish Health

Organic fish farms are strictly monitored by the Soil Association to ensure that the salmon are kept in healthy conditions. No antibiotics are used and no veterinary treatments are given unless it is critical to the health of the salmon and are approved by the Soil Association. No nets used on the cages on any of our organic fish farms are treated with anti-foulants.

Good Husbandry Techniques

Feeding

All our fish are hand fed to appetite for specific meals. This contributes to lower fat levels and improved feed conversion ratios.

The low oil diet results in salmon with a low oil flesh content, approx 8-11%

No growth promoters are used.

Best practice feeding systems have been adopted that:

Distribute feed effectively
Reduce waste
Increase FCR (Feed Conversion Rate)
Reduce health and safety risks

Water

Good quality water is maintained by ensuring that nets are kept clean. Cage nets are regularly changed. As anti foulants are not used the frequency of net changing is increased to reduce the organic matter that accumulates prior to changing the net. This leads to improved fish health and easier cleaning and disinfection of the nets.

Harvesting

Slaughtering is carried out humanely using mechanical stunners which is the approved method under Soil Association and Freedom Food standards. Harvesting according to Best Practice ensures fish are not down-graded and maintains the required standard of animal welfare.

Record Keeping

Accurate and thorough record keeping is essential if fish health and welfare is to be adequately monitored. In order to demonstrate compliance with a range of protocols it is necessary to maintain full and accurate records. There are additional legal, operational and economic reasons for doing so. The records will follow the requirements of the company Quality Management System (QMS).

Stock Origin

All stocks come from our own contracted hatchery and so can be easily traced.

Predator Control

With the variety of predatory species that may occur around fish farms it is important to consider the siting of a fish farm in relation to known concentrations of predators. This process is now accommodated formally within the Environmental Impact Assessment process that is required for all new sites. Good husbandry and housekeeping practices will reduce the chances of attracting predators.