Landcatch Ltd was founded in 1980 on the Ormsary estate, by Sir William Lithgow, the proprietor of the former Scott Lithgow shipyard on the Clyde. The farm was set up to utilise the natural resources of the estate whilst at the same time contributing to what continues to be a vibrant and industrious local community.
As part of the Lithgow group of companies, Landcatch was able to draw upon, as well as provide, a wide range of skills in the fields of engineering, biology and management. The company’s core business has always been the breeding and production of salmon ova and smolts, driven through a policy of continuous improvement which is primarily achieved through our selective breeding programme established in 1995, run under the title of Landcatch Natural Selection, based in Stirling. This programme has subsequently been extended around the world in salmon and other species.
The company operates four freshwater tank sites in Scotland producing up to 4.5 million smolts annually, plus a land-based seawater site for brood fish producing up to 40 million eggs.
Until 2009, Landcatch Limited had operations in Chile, producing both ova and smolts for the domestic market. This provided an excellent sales base for the import of eggs from our Scottish operations, until national health regulations prevented the importation of eggs into Chile. However, the Landcatch brand continues to enjoy high status there, in that there are several major breeding programme operations managed from the Stirling base, currently accounting for in excess of 25% of egg production within Chile.
In 2011, the Lithgow family decided to pull out of aquaculture, and sold the businesses to Hendrix Genetics, based in Boxmeer, Netherlands. Hendrix are the world’s leading breeder in poultry, pigs and turkeys, and have stated that it is their ambition to become the world’s leading salmon breeder. After the sale, the company emerged as Landcatch Natural Selection Ltd, to reflect the importance of the science behind the business.
