Dawnfresh trout Freedom Food certified

Dawnfresh was instrumental in initiating and developing the new welfare standards, which are the first to be established by Freedom Food for any species in the last 10 years.

“Dawnfresh farms are already managed in compliance with Code of Good Practice and the fish are grown to Quality Trout UK standards,” explained Barry Chung, commercial director of Dawnfresh. “Achieving Freedom Food certification demonstrates the high welfare standards to which Dawnfresh work, and is testament to the considerable efforts expended by all our farm staff.”

Freedom Food, the RSPCA’s farm assurance and food labelling scheme, aims to improve the welfare of animals farmed for food, and certification shows that farms conform to strict welfare standards. They also cover key areas such as water quality, stocking density, handling, health, slaughter and transportation, as well as wider environmental impacts.

Jeremy Cooper, Freedom Food’s chief executive, said: “We are delighted to welcome Dawnfresh as our first member farming higher welfare Freedom Food rainbow trout. If trout can achieve similar success to the booming Freedom Food salmon industry, we will have made another significant leap forward in higher welfare farming.”

Scottish company Dawnfresh produces both freshwater portion size trout, typically 425g, and larger sea-grown trout up to 7kg. The larger sea grown trout are tagged and branded ‘Loch Etive Ocean Trout’, and are selling particularly well in the USA, with markets also growing in France, the Netherlands, Russia, South Africa and Japan.

“Our fish are fed, nurtured and monitored to ensure they perform well and remain in good health, which is important for providing the best quality fish and seafood products. They are kept in deep nets that give them plenty of room to swim and thrive,” explained fish health manager Richard Hopewell.