Higher harvest volumes and strong prices led The Scottish Salmon Company PLC (SSC) to achieve a strong increase in income for the first-quarter of this year compared to the corresponding period of 2017.
The Edinburgh-based company’s revenue for the last quarter totaled a record GBP 43.4 million (USD 58.7 million, EUR 49.3 million), up from GBP 35.1 million (USD 47.5 million, EUR 39.9 million) in Q1 2017. Its harvest volume for the three months totaled 7,136 metric tons (MT), compared with 5,685 MT a year previously, and represented the fifth consecutive quarter that its production has increased.
As such, its revenue per kilogram remained strong at GBP 6.08 (USD 8.23, EUR 6.90), although it was down from a level of GBP 6.18 (USD 8.36, EUR 7.02) per kg achieved in Q1 2017.
SSC’s earnings before interest and taxes (EBIT) per kilogram before fair-value adjustment increased to GBP 1.83 (USD 2.48, EUR 2.08).
The company also reported that mortalities have reduced since the last quarter, due to colder seawater temperatures since the start of the year and initiatives taken to improve the biological situation.
Export volumes accounted for 61 percent of total sales during the period, up from 47 percent in Q1 2017. SSC has stated ambitions to increase exports worldwide underpinned by provenance and a strategy of brand development, and during the quarter its Lochlander salmon was successfully introduced to the North American market.
In Q1 2018, exports to markets outside Europe increased to 20 percent.
"Growing exports and strengthening our presence in overseas markets continues to be a key priority. This strategy is based on development of long-term partnerships, promotion of our brands and strong customer relations,” said SSC’s CEO Craig Anderson. "Demand for Scottish salmon as a premium product remains strong. We aim to capitalize on this through continued development of our premium brands."
The company expects to harvest around 26,500 MT of fish this year, up from 25,272 MT in 2017.
