Loch Duart counts some of the world’s top chefs and restaurants among its patrons. It produced the salmon served at the 2011 Royal Wedding and this year’s Diamond Jubilee celebrations. The company competes on an international level, operating successfully over three continents.

The £4 million funding from the Scottish Investment Bank (SIB), together with Scottish Venture Fund (SVF) partners Capricorn Investment Group, will help Loch Duart achieve its international growth objectives and expand its operations to keep up with the level of demand, while safeguarding jobs and creating new ones.

Highlands and Islands Enterprise account manager Keith Muir has been working with Loch Duart for a number of years, and welcomed the funding round.

"Loch Duart is a company with a clear vision; to produce the best-tasting products using the highest welfare and environmental standards.” he said. “It’s a crucial employer in an economically fragile area."

The company is a leading light for sustainability within the sector. Having been founded as a sustainable operation, Loch Duart approached the RSPCA to develop welfare standards for farmed salmon, and thanks to this work, it became the first salmon farm in the world to be approved under the Freedom Food scheme.

As a result, Loch Duart has a very strong international reputation thanks to its proactive approach to improving and leading the standards of the salmon farming industry.

The company has become one of the big success stories of the Scottish food and drink industry, with clients including some of the world’s finest establishments such as the French Laundry in California and the Goring hotel in London.

With international demand for Scottish salmon at an all time high, the company is keen to ensure that it can continue to take advantage of the opportunities presented by export markets.

Just last week, the company participated in a trade mission to China and Japan, led by Scottish Development International, to explore the opportunities presented by the fast-growing Asian market.

"Loch Duart is exactly the type of company we want to support,” said Kerry Sharp, acting director of SIB. “It has achieved a great deal over the past 13 years, it has an excellent reputation and it has very real growth potential.

"With the right help at the right time, this is a company that could go from being a highly successful Scottish concern to being a major player in the international fish production market. We are that help, and we’re proud to be working with this organisation at this time."

More about our Scottish Investment Bank (SIB)