But recent figures have revealed just how successful the industry has become. It has been reported that it injects in excess of £197 million per annum into Scottish businesses every year .
According to the Scottish Salmon Producers' Organisation, Scotland exported more than 12 million salmon to 60 countries in 2006 and is currently the third largest salmon producer in the world with approximately a 10% global market share.
In 1980 only 9% of the fish consumed by people came from aquaculture, now it is 43%. The UN FAO reports that aquaculture is the only way to meet the surging demand for seafood.
Scottish Salmon: a Story of Success
SCOTLAND, UK - The salmon farming industry is an important contributor to the Scottish economy, in terms of the 8,500 full and part-time jobs that it supports and of the location of these jobs in remote, rural areas on the west coast and islands.