Jobs boost for Stronsay after fish farm proposals get the green light

Eight full-time jobs are set to be created in Stronsay after permission to construct two fish farms was granted.

The farms at the Bay of Holland and Mill Bay will not only “safeguard the economic future” of the island, say operators Cooke Aquaculture but it may also lead to an expansion of its Orkney operations, Orkney Islands Council councillors heard.

Chris Webb, the company’s environmental and development manager, told councillors during the latest meeting of the planning committee, that once the fish farms come up to full production, there will be a “significant increase” in the number of jobs created at the company’s processing factory at Haston Industrial Estate.

The increase in production may even facilitate a move to a new premises, Mr Webb said during discussions over the company’s Stronsay proposals.

The two farms will take Cooke’s operational sites to 19 in Orkney and represent a huge boost for Stronsay’s economy.

The company say that there is a desire to recruit local Stronsay staff to service the two sites which comprise of 16 cages each. A 300-tonne semi-automated feed barge will also be installed at each site.