Animal welfare campaigners are challenging the decision to allow producers of Scottish salmon to drop the word “farmed” from labelling.
An application by the industry body claimed changing the protected name wording on the front of packaging from “Scottish farmed salmon” to “Scottish salmon” made sense because wild salmon was no longer sold in supermarkets, which consumers were aware of.
The naturalist and broadcaster Chris Packham, who is the president of the animal welfare charity the RSPCA, has described the growing Scottish salmon farming industry as “catastrophic” for fish welfare and Scotland’s environment.
Tavish Scott, the chief executive of Salmon Scotland, said: “We know when consumers talk about ‘Scottish salmon’ they are talking about the salmon produced by our member companies, and the update to the PGI is a small but important clarification.”
Defra declined to comment while proceedings were under way.