My name is Derek Ferguson, and I live in Lerwick, in the Shetland Isles, working as an assistant site manager for Scottish Seafarms.
I’ve been in this industry for 15 years now, starting off on a factory processing line.
Day-to-day, I’m involved with equipment maintenance, daily health checks, health and safety in the workplace, communication within other teams and lots of other challenges that arise as and when.
Although you develop a lot of skills in the workplace, you also have training rolled out too, including things like fish health, skippering tickets and chemical awareness.
Earlier this year, I completed an SVQ in Aquaculture Management at SCQF level 9, through work-based training. I managed to finish it a year ahead of schedule and also went on to win two national awards at Lantra Scotland’s ALBAS ceremony this year, which I’m proud of.
Our business here is ultimately responsible for maintaining the optimal health of a whole generation of stock on site, from smolt input to harvest, and the best thing about my job is producing good quality, healthy salmon. It’s really rewarding to get them to market in peak condition.
I enjoy my job and the rare sunny days working outside, on the sea, in Shetland, and would definitely recommend it to others.
This is a great place to live and work as the people are friendly and there's a great community spirit. You can go to lots of events throughout the year or just enjoy the tranquillity if you want.
It’s safe and fairly laid back, so a great place for bringing up a family.