Organic salmon stays on the menu for Cooke Scotland
Policy unchanged by Soil Association's decision to withdraw from sector
Fish farmer Cooke Scotland today said that organic salmon would continue to be an important part of its business, following an announcement yesterday by the Soil Association that it will withdraw from setting organic standards for the sector.
The Soil Association, which is the UK’s leading certifier of “organic” produce, uses a more rigid standard than that which the UK Government’s Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) sets for organic classification.
For the time being, the Soil Association will continue to act as Defra’s contracted provider of organic accrediation, using the Defra standard. It hopes its label will be replaced by a different one on salmon packaging by the end of next year.
A spokesperson for Cooke Scotland said: “The Soil Association has confirmed that it will no longer apply its higher standard requirements for organic salmon certification, and that certification will continue under the charity’s Certification of GB Regulation for farmed salmon.
Cooke Scotland has a strong track record in consistently meeting the high standards set by the Soil Association and this is testament to our trained farmers, dedicated fish health teams and licensed veterinarians who care for our salmon daily to ensure exceptional standards of animal welfare are maintained.
“Organic salmon production remains an important part of our business and will continue. Cooke Scotland has a strong track record in consistently meeting the high standards set by the Soil Association and this is testament to our trained farmers, dedicated fish health teams and licensed veterinarians who care for our salmon daily to ensure exceptional standards of animal welfare are maintained.
“Our commitment to fish health and welfare, responsible farming and continuous improvement remains unchanged.”
Cooke Scotland and Scotland’s biggest salmon producer, Mowi, produce both organic-standard and non-organic standard salmon. Mowi’s operation in Ireland is exclusively organic, but is certified by the Irish Organic Association.
No 'meaningful progress'
The Soil Association warned last year that it would withdraw from the sector if meaningful progress was not delivered by summer 2026.
Proposed changes to its salmon standard included stricter and more detailed preventative management approaches to reduce the risk of injuries and mortality due to handling, disease, and pests, and a complete ban on the use of the lice treatment deltamethrin in organic farms.
Other targets included a phasing out of forage fish in feed.
Yesterday, the Soil Association said that it was not confident that issues that concerned it were likely to be resolved within a suitable timeframe through its standards.
A spokesperson for trade body Salmon Scotland said yesterday: “We have been assured by the UK Government that our farms will continue to be assessed against organic standards with no loss of certification. Consumers can therefore continue to buy Scottish organic salmon with confidence.”
