http://www.thesundaytimes.co.uk/sto/news/article1361989.ece
12th Jan 2014
Scotland ÔÇÿused as back doorÔÇÖ to ship salmon to China
Sales to China hit £37m
SCOTLAND is being used as a ÔÇ£back doorÔÇØ by Norway to ship thousands of tons of farmed salmon to China, environmentalists have claimed.
Since 2010, when the Chinese authorities imposed trade restrictions on Norway after a Chinese dissident was awarded the Nobel peace prize, exports of Scottish farmed salmon ÔÇö about 66% of which is controlled by Norwegian-owned companies ÔÇö have rocketed by more than 6,000%, from 111 tons to more than 7,000 tons.
The disclosure, by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, shows the value of farmed salmon exports reached £37m last year.
It has prompted environmentalists to accuse Alex Salmond of pandering to ChinaÔÇÖs demands for farmed salmon at the expense of wild fish on the west coast of Scotland. On Wednesday, Salmond will open the salmon fishing season on the River Tay at Dunkeld in Perthshire.
Campaigners will urge the first minister to call a moratorium on Scotland ÔÇÿused as back doorÔÇÖ to ship salmon to China.