Na h-Eileanan an Iar SNP MP, Angus B MacNeil was delighted to speak at a reception in Stornoway yesterday to welcome 87-metre Ronja Star, the largest well boat fish farming vessel in Scottish aquaculture.

Commenting Angus MacNeil MP said:

“It was fantastic to be able to attend this event and to receive a tour of the new well boat the Ronja Star and it is good to see Bakkafrost doing so well in the Western Isles, by being the company chartering this boat from Norway. 

“The Ronja Star is a very impressive well boat with a hull built in Turkey then fitted out in Norway. It cleans the lice from the salmon by using freshwater by having desalination facilities on board.  Salmon, of course, can cope with fresh or salt water but the lice can’t cope with freshwater, therefore lice are removed not only off the surface but any that may be in or around the gills which are vital to the health of the fish, and a better process all round than using chemicals.

“The facilities on board are excellent and the crew have access to a gym and sauna.

“I was first met with Bakkafrost in 2013 when I visited their headquarters in Runavik in the Faroe Islands, back then I had no idea that Bakkafrost would eventually end up owning the Scottish Salmon Company.

“It is quite astonishing to see what Bakkafrost are achieving now and the investments that they are making in Scotland, such as this new well boat that they are chartering from Norwegian well boat operator, Solvtrans. 

“They are producing their premium products in our islands and their methods of production are improving all the time with technology.  They are a very important employer in our community, and it is good to see that it is all going in the right direction.”

ENDS