Truckies, business figures launch Tasmanian Farmed Salmon Alliance

A new alliance claiming to represent all salmon industry workers aims to counter criticism from opponents who have already dismissed the new group as “spin” and “astroturfing”.

TRUCK drivers, factory workers, and business heavyweights gathered on Tuesday to form a new coalition of pro-salmon farming advocates.

The newly formed Tasmanian Farmed Salmon Alliance gathered in Margate over a barbecue of salmon fillets, salmon burgers and salmon sashimi.

The alliance claims to represent all 12,000 Tasmanian workers whose livelihoods directly or indirectly depend on the salmon industry.

One of them is Roger Stone, who works at the De Bruyn’s Transport Hobart depot.

Mr Stone said salmon farming copped frequent criticism from the “anti-everything” brigade, but insisted the industry had cleaned up its act in recent years.

Roger Stone, who works at the De Bruyn's Transport Hobart depot, is a pro-salmon-farming advocate. Picture: Kenji Sato

He said the trucking workforce relied heavily on the salmon industry for employment, particularly in their Hobart and Devonport depots.

“As a company we do a massive amount of work for Huon Aquaculture and for Tassal, moving up and down the island,” Mr Stone said.

“In my Hobart depot, it’s pretty close to 50 per cent of our work, and we hire about 60 people in this depot alone.”

Another of the new alliance members was David Whyte, the managing director of Biomar’s Tasmanian fish feed manufacturing plant.

Mr Whyte said farmed salmon was the “most environmentally responsible form of meat” available.

“We have an incredibly well-monitored, well-managed, well-regulated industry here,” Mr Whyte said.

“This is the best place in the world to rear farmed salmon – it’s the only place in Australia we would consider rearing farmed salmon – so every single cog in the machine down here is important.”

Biomar’s David Whyte, Spectran’s Mark Hindmarsh and De Bruyn’s John De Bruyn have joined the Tasmanian Farmed Salmon Alliance. Picture: Kenji Sato

Spectran environmental services manager Mark Hindmarsh has also joined the alliance.

Mr Hindmarsh works with the environmental side of the industry, and said businesses have made great strides in reducing their environmental footprint.

“I think, unfortunately, a lot of the negative controversies around is broadly misinformed,” Mr Hindmarsh said.

“If people took the opportunity to understand what business do and how we all work together to achieve the greater good, there would be a much better positive outcome out of it.”

The pro-salmon group’s launch coincided with an anti-salmon farming gathering held by the Neighbours of Fish Farming group at Hobart Town Hall.

The group’s president Peter George dismissed the new group’s messaging as mere “spin” designed to protect an industry in damage control.

“They’re obviously trying to do something to shore up what is a totally toxic reputation, and it will fail,” Mr George said.

“It’s astroturfing – trying to make it look green and clean and lovely, but we all know perfectly well that under the water it’s destroying our waterways.”