Amar Seafood Acquires Otter Ferry Seafish Ltd. in Scotland

November 20, 2024
Alastair Barge, Managing Director Otter Ferry Seafish, and Bjørn Apeland, Chair Amar Group

Amar Seafood is pleased to announce the acquisition of Otter Ferry Seafish Ltd., a pioneering Scottish marine hatchery with a rich history of innovation in aquaculture since 1968. This strategic move aligns with Amar Seafood's dedication to advancing sustainable seafood production and expanding its global operations.

Otter Ferry has been instrumental in developing trout farming, land-based salmon farming, and the production of salmon broodstock and smolt. As Scotland's sole commercial marine hatchery, it has played a leading role in establishing the production of halibut, wrasse, and lumpfish.

An aerial photo of Otter Ferry Seafish's operations in Otter Ferry, Scotland.

Alastair Barge, Managing Director of Otter Ferry, expressed confidence in the acquisition:

– We are very pleased and excited to entrust the stewardship of this historic company to Amar Seafood. We know them well and have developed a strong supplier-customer relationship that fits well with our ethos of innovation and sustainability. We can clearly see the benefits that Amar Seafood will bring, not just to the company, but to all those involved in the company and the Scottish aquaculture sector as a whole. Otter Ferry has kept the flame alight for halibut as a species over the last 30 years, and we now have a company in Amar Seafood that can more than match our vision for this extraordinary product.

Amar Seafood, has a proven track record in the fish farming industry, focusing on high-value species such as halibut and wolffish. The company emphasizes sustainable practices and innovative aquaculture solutions to meet global seafood demands.

Bjørn M. Apeland, Chairman of Amar Group, commented on the acquisition:

– We are absolutely delighted with our acquisition. We see Otter Ferry as a Scottish-based international hub supporting our operations in Norway and Canada, both as an advanced hatchery producing increased amounts of quality juveniles and also as a valuable industry agri-tech research centre. We are committed to a phased expansion of the hatchery to enable us to develop our near-market on-growing capacity in Scotland, Canada, and Norway.

The experienced team at Otter Ferry will continue to manage the business, complemented by Amar Seafood’s additional expertise from both Norway and Canada.

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