Crab Processing Plant Gets Snapped Up In Caithness

Things are about to get snappy in Caithness - after a new crab processing plant was given the go ahead at Thurso Bay.

Scrabster Seafoods Ltd, based at Scrabster Harbour, primarily exports white fish landed at the harbour to mainland Europe and the Far East.

The company has identified an opportunity to diversify and take advantage of the 2,000 tonnes of crab landed by fishermen at the harbour every year.

Scrabster Seafoods is now looking at investing in a new plant and equipment to begin crab processing on site, supported by £119,832 from economic development agency Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE).

The project will create around 25 jobs at Scrabster over the next three years.

Scrabster Seafoods is a family-owned business established in 1968 and has grown steadily to around 25 staff.

William Calder Jnr from Scrabster Seafoods, commented: “We are grateful to HIE for their ongoing support. This new project will be a great benefit for the local fisherman and the community in terms of employment going forward. It will allow fishermen to have greater choice in who they sell their catch to and a more convenient and flexible market, which can only be a good thing for them. Every other major shellfish port has a processing presence and given the healthy volumes of shellfish landed in Scrabster and the surrounding harbours in the county we felt it was an ideal route for our company to take. The north of Scotland has some of the finest seafood on offer in the world and we aim to develop a shellfish product and create a brand of the finest cooked shellfish to enhance the produce we are already offering and exporting globally.”

Roy Kirk, area manager at HIE, said: “Scrabster Seafoods has built up a well-deserved reputation for supplying markets across the world with quality fish and seafood from our northern seas. This diversification into crab processing should open up new markets to the company and ensure the business continues to grow for many more years to come. We are delighted to be supporting the company towards purchasing new equipment and marketing support.”