Disco Scallops has been crowned the winner of the Food Innovation Award 2025 at the BBC Food & Farming Awards, with the accolade recognising its bold, low‑impact approach to scallop fishing and its role in reshaping supply, story and seafood on the plate.
What started as a surprising discovery: scallops flocking to brightly‑lit crab and lobster pots, has grown into a full‑scale movement. Rather than dredging the seabed, the method uses modified static pots with lights to attract scallops into the gear. The result is a scallop caught with far less seabed disturbance, bycatch and fuel usage, and a supply chain built for traceability.
“The challenges facing the fishing industry today demand modern solutions. Industrial, commercial fishing is a relatively recent development, and innovative methods like potting for scallops are essential to meet these contemporary challenges while supporting small-scale fishermen and protecting marine ecosystems,” said Dr Robert Enever, the Fishtek Marine scientist who made the Disco Scallop discovery. “It’s about evolving and creating an opportunity to fish smarter.”
This innovation comes at a pivotal time, said the Disco Scallop Collective, highlighting that traditional scallop dredging dominates UK landings, accounting for at least 95% of the UK’s scallop, but that it also faces intense scrutiny for seabed damage, bycatch and carbon release. It pointed to the recent “Ocean” film with David Attenborough which exposed how destructive these methods can be, intensifying public demand for change.
Consumers are not just choosing seafood; they’re choosing stories and values, stated the Disco Scallop Collective, adding that with provenance, method and sustainability built into each catch, Disco Scallops offers a premium alternative that chefs and diners can be proud of.
“Pure, sweet and sensational – they’re the Rolls‑Royce of scallops,” Chef and MSC Ambassador Mitch Tonks said.
Already appearing in several restaurants and listed by leading seafood platforms, the brand is gaining traction while staying true to its core: connecting small‑scale fishermen to better markets, protecting the seabed and delivering a taste experience worth the premium.
“Disco Scallops shows what’s possible when you build a brand around how something is caught, not just what it is,” Disco Scallop Collective Co‑founder Rachel Walker said. “We’re scaling a fishery that supports coastal communities, rewards responsible sourcing and proves that seafood done differently can work.”
With the award spotlight on the project, the project’s focus has turned to expansion: more fishermen equipped, more routes to market, and further growth across the UK’s seafood supply chain. The ambition is to support UK fishermen, highlight the importance of fair and transparent sourcing, and lead the way in responsible scallop fishing methods that work in harmony with the ocean.
“Winning this award is a huge win for awareness of the project”, Walker said. “We want people to know that catching scallops with pots and light is real, and it’s here to stay. Consumers can go into restaurants and start asking, “are these scallops dredged, diver-caught, or disco?”
Hosted by Hugh Fearnley‑Whittingstall, the Food Innovation Award celebrates businesses, organisations and people developing new production methods, bold food‑tech or low‑impact supply chains that answer some of the biggest challenges in the food system.
