Salmon Scotland said Scottish salmon exports to India could generate up to £130 million over the next decade, following the planned removal of import tariffs under the UK-India trade agreement.
Scottish salmon currently faces a 33% import duty in India. That tariff is expected to be removed later this year when the agreement enters into force, prompting producers to prepare for expanded access to the market.
Salmon Scotland said new analysis indicates exports to India could exceed £30 million a year by the end of the decade under high-growth projections, potentially positioning India as one of Scotland’s leading overseas markets for salmon by the mid-2030s.
The trade body modelled three growth scenarios: low growth of around £21 million cumulative exports over 10 years, medium growth of approximately £70 million, and high growth of about £131 million over the same period.
Scottish salmon exports to India have so far remained limited, at around 70 tonnes a year worth roughly £0.5 million up to 2022. However, Salmon Scotland said this suggests early demand and that supply chains are already established.
Tavish Scott, chief executive of Salmon Scotland, said India represents the next major growth opportunity for the sector, following strong expansion in other Asian markets. He pointed to China as an example of how demand can scale rapidly once trade barriers fall.
Exports of Scottish salmon to China were close to £100 million in 2025, according to the trade body.
The India opportunity forms part of a broader strategy to expand exports in Asia and the Gulf, alongside ongoing UK trade negotiations with countries including the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia, and a new agreement with South Korea that secures permanent tariff-free access for UK goods.
Kirsty McNeill said the UK-India trade deal taking effect later this year presents a major opportunity for Scottish salmon exporters and highlights the sector’s growth potential.
Scottish salmon is the UK’s largest food export, with international sales of £828 million in 2025, a 2% decline year-on-year, according to HMRC data cited by Salmon Scotland. Sales to Asia increased by 18% over the same period. France, the United States, and China were the top individual markets.
Salmon Scotland said that rising demand for premium imported seafood in major Indian cities, combined with Scotland’s reputation for quality and production standards, underpins its growth projections. The trade body added that strong distribution networks and reliable cold-chain logistics will be critical to converting the opportunity into sustained export volumes.