“Skretting plays a major role in the success of my business,” says McMillan. “Gordon Reid and Drew Anderson in Lerwick and Rob Sinnott from the mainland have become an integral part of what we do. They reliably provide good quality feed together with valuable advice. This has helped us reach the point where demand is greater than our current production of 1.2 million smolt, so we are scaling up. Being local to Shetland, we fit with the current trend from consumers and retailers looking for locally produced food with minimum food miles and Skretting is part of that. The presence in Scalloway means Skretting is regarded in Shetland as a local company. Now, in addition, their sponsorship has helped me compete internationally in my other passion, fly fishing.”
Each year teams from Scotland, England, Ireland and Wales compete in an international fly fishing championship. Sponsorship from Skretting helped McMillan in 2009 to compete in the heats, semi-finals and finals for the Scottish team selection. Having qualified for the national team, this spring Skretting’s support enabled McMillan to travel to Southern Ireland where Scotland came away with the gold medal, beating the hot favourites Ireland in their home waters. McMillan was ranked third in the Scottish team of 14, an achievement that gives him an automatic place in the 2011 team that will compete a little closer to home, in Orkney. “Without Skretting support it would be impossible for me, based on the most northerly of the Shetland Isles, to be part of the Scottish team. This was my first opportunity to represent my country and the gold medal is really the icing on the cake,” adds McMillan.