Soil Association ordered to release organic salmon inspection reports

Last week, the General Regulatory Tribunal ruled in favour of the UK Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO), ordering the Soil Association Certification to release inspection reports of organic salmon farms in Scotland. The documents were originally requested in 2024 by campaign group WildFish, which opposes salmon farming.

When the group asked for the reports, it was told by Soil Association Certification to go to the Department for Environment, Food, and Rural Affairs (Defra) for the documents. After receiving summaries of the reports from Defra, WildFish took the case to the ICO.

The Soil Association argued that Defra have always processed “information requests regarding information from organic control bodies” and that requests under Environmental Information Regulations (EIRs) should be sent to Defra — an argument that the ICO rejected, asserting that the requests should instead be dealt with directly by Soil Association Certification. The first-tier tribunal upheld the ICO’s judgement, when rejecting Soil Association Certification’s appeal.

Animal Concern welcomes the tribunal’s ruling, which marks an important step in the fight for transparency within the salmon farming industry and the public’s right to know. 

Incidentally, the Soil Association has launched a review of the standards for organic farmed salmon, looking into mortality, veterinary treatments, welfare, sustainable feed, and environmental impact. We invite supporters to give their opinions to the Soil Association’s consultation.