A Shetland laboratory will soon be able to carry out accredited chemical analysis tests on seafood bringing huge cost and time savings for the islands' seafood producers.

Shetland Seafood Quality Control Ltd has just secured a grant from Shetland Enterprise towards the £128,500 development of an environmental chemistry lab and appointment of a chemist.  When the upgrade is complete, the lab will be able to offer the islands' seafood producers a number of rigorous chemical tests, which are currently only available on the mainland.

The company currently offers a wide variety of quality monitoring, microbiological testing and environmental monitoring services for the Shetland seafood industry, including administering the Shetland salmon producers' badge of quality - the Superior Quality Shetland Salmon scheme.

They also assist salmon farmers to monitor the compliance of their fish farms for the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, help fish farms obtain new site licenses as well as conducting marine surveys.

The planned upgrade will allow the lab to offer chemical tests for the first time.  The tests will cover both regulatory and quality demands, including chemicals and oils testing in salmon flesh and will meet the ISO 17025 standard as recommended by the Food Standards Agency.

The three-year project to upgrade the lab has attracted a £44,975 grant from Shetland Enterprise.  This will go towards the appointment of an analytical chemist to implement the testing procedures to the satisfaction of the international UKAS standard - United Kingdom Accreditation Service - as well as investment in equipment.

John Telford said:  "Recruitment for the analytical chemist begins this week and we are hopeful that we will fill the post by October.  That will allow us to immediately start test method development and validation working towards achieving accreditation by the end of the three year project."

Mark Georgeson from Shetland Enterprise said:  "We are very pleased to be able to support this project.  Not only will it result in the creation of a highly skilled job, but once the lab is up and running, it will provide a valuable service to our area's salmon producers, who will no longer have to pay for testing to be done at mainland facilities."

The new tests will include analysis of fat content, carotenoids, ivermectin and fatty acids in fish flesh and feeds, analysis of chemicals and organic carbon in sediments, and antibiotic screening.

Shetland Seafood Quality Control Ltd currently employs 18 staff and was established in 2000.