In November 2018, Skretting announced plans to cease UK manufacturing activities at the Invergordon facility in Scotland which closed at the end of April 2019. Cooke Inc. acquired the feed mill in September 2019 and through its subsidiary Northeast Nutrition Scotland, has worked closely with former employees who were affected by the closure to resume operations at the mill.
The company revealed that the production of fish feed restarted in January 2020 with the first batch rolling off the production lines and delivered within four months of Cooke acquiring the plant. Northeast Nutrition Scotland has re-hired 22 people, most of whom were made redundant when the mill closed last year.
Cooke is committed to minimizing the impacts of its business on the environment and to respecting the needs of all users of its shared resources while producing safe, wholesome, quality and nutritious seafood products which consistently meet the expectations of its customers.
Northeast Nutrition Scotland Limited will utilize MSC sustainably sourced fishery products that carry the Marine Stewardship Council’s iconic blue checkmark, signaling that they come from a healthy, sustainable fishery. Fisheries that are MSC certified are recognized as some of the best managed in the world. The mill has also achieved Label Rouge and Organic accreditations and has full flexibility to produce feed for seawater and freshwater sites across its three production lines.
The mill will supply feed to Scottish salmon farms in Orkney and Shetland owned and operated by sister company Cooke Aquaculture Scotland. Northeast Nutrition Scotland will also seek to develop new supply chain opportunities within the UK and global aquaculture sector.
Chris Bryden, Invergordon mill manager said that “this is a milestone moment for the company. To get the mill operational within four months is testament to the skill and experience of the people who work for us. We are really pleased to have been able to re-hire so many of the people who lost their jobs when the plant closed last year- their knowledge and commitment is what will enable us to rebuild the business and secure its future. Now that we are back up and running, I am confident that we will grow the supply chain and meet the nutritional needs of our customers with top-quality feed.”
