• Seafood is a billion-pound industry with four out of five households in Great Britain consuming seafood at least once a month.

• In 2005, consumers in Great Britain bought 408,000 tonnes of fresh, frozen and canned seafood at retail outlets (worth over £2.2 billion), representing a volume increase of 2% and a value increase of 5% on 2004.

• The overall UK seafood market, including restaurants, fish and chip shops etc. was worth £5.2 billion in 2004, and is steadily growing.

• The UK is becoming increasingly reliant on imports. Import volumes have increased by 39% from 1995 to 2004.

• Around £1.47 billion worth of seafood was imported in 2004 and the UK exported around £881 million in seafood products mainly to Continental Europe.

•  Supplies of seafood to the UK can be divided into five categories:

o Landings by UK vessels
o Aquaculture
o Fresh and chilled imports
o Frozen imports
o Other – including cured, prepared/preserved, live, meals and Flours

• The UK fishing industry employs 11,600 fishermen working on 6,600 vessels. In 2004 the UK fleet landed 654 thousand tonnes of fish (including shellfish) worth £513 million into the UK and abroad.

• Aquaculture = fish and shellfish farming. Shellfish species farmed in the UK include mussels, oysters, clams, scallops and queenies. And the main marine finfish species being farmed are cod, halibut and turbot (Note: salmon is not a marine finfish. For more information about salmon farming visit www.scottishsalmon.co.uk).

• There are around 280 ports, harbours and creeks around the UK where fish is landed. The major fishing ports in the UK in terms of value of fish landed are, Peterhead, Lochinver and Fraserburgh.

• There are around 500 seafood processing companies in the UK employing around 22,000 people.

• The food service sector covers a range of outlets including fish and chip shops, canteens, hotels, restaurants and education. Fish and chips dominate this sector.

• There are over 11,500 fish and chip shops all over the UK. These shops sell 250 million portions of fish and chips each year.

• While most fish landed in the UK is landed into Scottish ports, England and Wales is by far the main market. In 2004, England and Wales accounted for 93% of household fish consumption while 65% of fish landed was in Scotland.

• The most popular species of seafood in retail is cod – in 2005 consumers spent over £365 million on it. Salmon, haddock and prawns have also seen strong sales in the latest year.

• Cod still accounts for 22% of total GB consumption and haddock for 14%. Most of our shellfish is transported to continental markets, and prawns now account for 11% of GB consumption.

• 10 species account for 75% of all the seafood sold in the UK.

• Seafood can be divided into three separate categories:

• Demersal – whitefish including cod, haddock, plaice, whiting, pollack, saithe (coley), hake, monk/anglerfish, dover sole, lemon sole, megrim, witches, brill, turbot, halibut, dogfish, skates, rays, John Dory, bass, ling, catfish, redfish.

• Pelagic – oil-rich fish including herring, mackerel, pilchard, sprat, horse mackerel, whitebait, tuna.

• Shellfish:

o Molluscs including scallops, oysters, cockles, mussels, winkles.
o Crustacea including nephrops (scampi, langoustines), crabs, lobsters, crawfish, shrimps etc.
o Cephalopods including octopus, squid, cuttlefish.