Secrecy over ‘unnatural’ plan to feed chicken to farmed salmon

Three of Scotland’s four big fish farming companies have refused to say whether they are planning to start feeding chicken to caged salmon, prompting accusations that the “sickening” proposal was “shrouded in secrecy”.

The UK Government’s Animal and Plant Health Agency also won’t say whether it has been approached by companies seeking authorisation to add proteins derived from poultry to the food for farmed salmon in Scotland.

The Financial Times (FT) reported on 15 October that companies which farm salmon in Scotland were planning to introduce chicken into salmon feed. The story, quoting industry sources, said that chicken was already being used in other countries.

The move would end a “longstanding taboo” against feeding chicken to salmon in the UK and risked a consumer backlash and supermarket bans because of fears it was “unnatural”, the FT said. The paper pointed out that processed chicken byproducts are much cheaper than the wild fish which salmon are currently fed.

Now, in response to questions from The Ferret, the industry body, Salmon Scotland, along with three foreign-owned salmon farming firms, Mowi, Bakkafrost and Scottish Sea Farms, have all failed to rule out using chicken. A fourth company, Cooke Aquaculture, said it had “no current plans” to introduce chicken.

Salmon Scotland insisted that no Scottish salmon producers currently used poultry-derived proteins in their feed, but declined to comment on future plans. It said the industry was “continually exploring ways to improve sustainability while maintaining the high standards consumers expect.”

Campaigners warned that consumers were being left “totally in the dark” about a plan that was a “new low” for the “cruel” salmon and chicken industries. They demanded that companies and the Animal and Plant Health Agency “come clean”.

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The FerretRob Edwards

Salmon are carnivores that naturally eat other fish. In farms around Scotland’s west coast, they have been fed fishmeal and fish oil extracted from anchovies, krill, sand eels and other fish.

In recent years salmon companies say they have also made increasing use of vegetables and cereals. Now, it seems, they are thinking about introducing proteins derived from the bones, livers and brains of chicken.

According to the FT, Scotland’s biggest salmon farming company, Norwegian-owned Mowi, is planning to introduce poultry-based feed at its farms in Norway and Scotland. Two other Norwegian salmon giants, Lerøy and SalMar, which jointly own Scottish Sea Farms, were reported to have started including chicken in salmon feed.

After outbreaks of bovine spongiform encephalopathy – commonly known as mad cow disease – in the 1980s and 1990s, using chicken in fish feed was banned because of fears that feeding animals to other animals could spread disease. But the ban was lifted in 2013, and feeding chicken to salmon has since been legal.

Salmon farmers are coming under growing economic pressure to switch from fishmeal to chicken. The FT reported that the cost of fishmeal has almost doubled in the last two years, and poultry feed is now less than half the price.

Salmon Scotland told the industry press in October that “no Scottish salmon producers use poultry-derived proteins in their feed”. But it did not deny the FT suggestion that companies were planning to do so.

When asked by The Ferret to specifically say whether there were any plans to start feeding chicken to farmed salmon, Salmon Scotland refused to add anything to its previous statement. Mowi and Bakkafrost also refused to answer the question, deferring to Salmon Scotland.

Scottish Sea Farms failed to make any response at all to repeated requests to comment. A spokesperson for Cooke Aquaculture said: “Cooke Scotland does not use poultry protein in its salmon feed and has no current plans to introduce it to the feed.”

Companies that wish to use chicken in salmon feed are required to apply to the UK Government’s Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) for registration and authorisation. But when we asked the agency to say whether anyone had applied, it said it “wouldn’t give details on specific companies”.

The Scottish Government’s Food Standards Scotland said it was aware that salmon farming companies were “exploring the potential use of poultry-derived material in salmon feed”. But it added: “To the best of our knowledge, no Scottish salmon producers use poultry-derived protein in their feed.”

The Scottish Government told The Ferret it hadn’t received any queries from salmon farmers about introducing chicken into salmon feed. Companies wouldn’t be expected to apply to the Scottish Government, but to APHA, a spokesperson said.

"People have a right to know whether this grim practice could make its way to Scotland" - Abigail Penny, Animal Equality UK

The campaign group, Animal Equality UK, argued that it would be the remains of factory-farmed “frankenchickens” that would be fed to farmed salmon. “It’s nothing short of sickening to think that two of the deadliest industries in Britain could be propping each other up,” said executive director,  Abigail Penny.

“These animals would never meet in nature. The idea of one animal’s misery being used to fuel another’s is a new low, even for industries already this cruel.”

She called on the industry and regulators to “come clean” and rule out using chicken. “People have a right to know whether this grim practice could make its way to Scotland,” she told The Ferret.

“If salmon farming companies have no intention of feeding chicken to their fish, why won’t they simply say so? Between the industry’s silence and the regulators’ evasiveness, this shroud of secrecy leaves the door wide open and keeps consumers totally in the dark.”

The Scottish Greens said they have quizzed Scottish ministers on the environmental and consumer impact of switching from fishmeal to chicken to feed farmed salmon. “People buying Scottish salmon have a right to know what it was fed and where that feed came from,” said the party’s marine environment spokesperson, Ariane Burgess MSP.

She called on salmon companies to say whether they were planning to use chicken in Scotland. The APHA should be “open” and shoppers should be informed of any change before chicken-fed salmon reaches supermarket shelves, she argued.

Mark Borthwick, an expert on salmon farming and a visiting fellow at the Open University, pointed out that Norway’s food safety authority publishes the names of fish feed manufacturers who use chicken. “Scotland should publish its register too,” he said.

“There is no mechanism requiring farms to tell consumers when feed recipes change. In my opinion, it could happen at any time without public notice, meaning citizens could start consuming poultry-fed salmon without any warning.”

The WildFish campaign group criticised companies for being “unwilling to answer a straightforward question” about what they intend to feed millions of caged salmon. “The apparent refusal to give a clear answer raises even more questions about the lack of transparency in this woefully under-regulated industry,” said Scotland director, Nick Underdown.

“No Scottish salmon producers use poultry-derived proteins in their feed" - Salmon Scotland

A Salmon Scotland spokesperson said: “Scottish salmon farmers are committed to producing high-quality, nutritious food, with fish health, welfare and food safety at the heart of everything they do.

“No Scottish salmon producers use poultry-derived proteins in their feed. Feed ingredients are carefully selected to meet the requirements of customers.

“All feed used in Scottish salmon farming must meet strict UK regulatory standards for safety and quality, with the sector continually exploring ways to improve sustainability while maintaining the high standards consumers expect.”

The Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC), which certifies the sustainability of salmon farms, said it took a “neutral position” on the use of poultry in fish feed. “ASC neither requires nor prohibits their use and does not recommend or endorse particular feed ingredients,” added a spokesperson.