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Roots to Work is a project of Sustain: the alliance for better food and farming.

Research Consultant - Scottish Aquaculture Industry

Foodrise (formally Feedback)
Remote working

Posted: 16 Jul 2025

Deadline: 4 Aug 2025

Compensation: £6,000-£8,000 incl VAT for project

Living Wage employer

Paid Fixed term / contract Remote working

Job description

Foodrise (formerly Feedback) Request for Proposals: Identifying, attributing and quantifying the impacts of aquaculture on Scottish salmon populations, landscapes and ecosystems, and angling related businesses  

Background 

Salmon farming poses numerous issues including mass fish die offs, increase in harmful algal blooms, plastic pollution and antimicrobial resistance. Foodrise’s research has to date focused on the issue of feeding wild fish, in the form of fish meal and fish oil (FMFO), to salmon. In many cases this wild fish comes from the Global South in places where food insecurity is a major issue. By highlighting the industry’s voracious appetite for wild fish, we have exposed the structural injustices inherently linked to the expansion of the industry.  

These injustices are also being faced by local communities in Scotland. Businesses, the iconic Scottish landscapes, ecosystems, and wild salmon are all suffering at the hands of the salmon farming industry. Businesses in Scotland, that depend on wild salmon catches, are struggling due to decline in numbers and some studies suggest that this can be attributed to the growth of salmon aquaculture in the region. In many cases, reductions in survival rates of wild salmon are greater than 50% when exposed to salmon farms. This has been attributed to the interbreeding between farmed escapees and wild populations, threatening the genetic integrity that is key to their survival. There is also a risk of parasites, such as sea lice, being passed on from salmon farms to wild populations as they migrate.  

The request for proposals  

We are seeking a consultant to explore more closely the links between the growth of the Scottish aquaculture industry and the decline in wild salmon populations and associated impacts on angling businesses, as well as impacts on ecosystems and landscapes.  We are seeking to establish causal relationship between specific aquaculture sites, salmon populations in specific rivers, ecosystem impacts, and specific businesses that rely on the salmon in these rivers or the integrity of the Scottish landscape. 

Foodrise is seeking a consultant to carry out the necessary research we will need to establish these links. Envisaged areas to explore include: 

• Industry information on trends in Scottish salmon farming and small and medium sized businesses that rely on salmon (eg, angling businesses, angling hotels etc)  
• The widespread, long-term or irreversible environmental damage caused by Scottish salmon farming 
• Data on trends on Scottish wild salmon population numbers 
• Academic literature on the causes of the decline in wild salmon population numbers, especially research on the impacts of farmed salmon on wild populations   
• Other sources of information, including policy and government documents and lived experience  
• Suggestions for further primary/ field research  

Outputs 

• A fully referenced, detailed report 
• A document library of authoritative sources  
• A list and contact details of consulted (and other relevant) academics, policy makers, civil society and small and medium angling related business owners  

Foodrise is actively seeking to move through an anti-racist and anti-oppressive journey in every aspect of its work. We acknowledge that the environmental sector is less open to people from under-represented backgrounds, and we are strongly committed to identifying and correcting where we may be perpetuating patriarchal, white supremacist values and other forms of oppression in our organisational culture, partnerships, and community work.

Read our full Equity, Justice and Anti-oppression statement here.

Application information

Please submit your CV, highlighting your qualifications and experience for this work, as well as a short proposal (up to 2 pages) outlining your proposed approach for this work.  

Our indicative budget for this work is in the region of £6,000-£8,000 incl VAT. We welcome proposals from suitably qualified PhD researchers and professionals.  

Please submit your proposal by 4th August to Amelia at amelia@foodrise.org.uk. Questions can also be directed to Amelia.  

Interviews will happen on the w/c 11th August. Final delivery of the report is expected by the end of October 2025.  

Please mention Roots to Work when applying for these jobs