The perils of nationalism in a global market

by GUSTAV-ERIK BLAALID, EDITOR gustav@fishfarmingxpert.com

To judge from a recent article in Scotland on Sunday, Scottish nationalism appears to be taking on new dimensions. But whether this is related to the forthcoming chance to sever ties with Westminster or the particularly hot summer causing widespread sunstroke is hard to ascertain.

Although it is wrong to proclaim Protect Wild Scotland as representative of the Scottish nation, they seem to have sufficient influence for one of the country’s largest newspapers to recently run an extensive article based on the organisation’s allegations.

According to the conservation organisation, Scots should be deeply shocked that many salmon raised in Scottish lochs begin their lives as eggs in Norway; disheartened to hear that several farming companies in Scotland are dominated by Norwegian interests; and ought to be appalled to learn that farmed salmon and wild salmon are not always clearly distinguished in the shops. As a result of these factors, Protect Wild Scotland argues, much of the salmon grown in Scottish waters must be branded as Norwegian on supermarket shelves.

Interesting, but perhaps these criticisms are wide of the mark when one considers the bigger picture. Looking at the whisky industry, for example, Scotland can’t supply enough barley to fuel the global demand for the national drink, so maltsters are now encouraging more English arable farmers to grow grain specially for Scotch production. What’s more, the casks that impart much of their flavour to Scotch whisky are often made from American oak and have previously contained Spanish sherry, yet these factors are exalted, not criticised.

A growing part of the world’s commodity production is the same way. Clothing designed in the UK or Norway might be cut in India, sewed in China then sold in Europe. Or how many parts in a German car are made in Germany? Yet even if only the cigarette lighter of a Mercedes-Benz is manufactured in Germany most people still associate it as a quintessentially German brand.

Protect Wild Scotland is naive if they think salmon which have their genetic roots in Norway or the Faroe Islands cannot be considered Scottish, even if these eggs are then grown on in Scottish waters. Perhaps they should consider that those who are eligible to vote in September’s independence referendum must currently be resident in Scotland – their place of birth is deemed irrelevant.