Fishing is ‘of much greater social, economic and cultural importance to Scotland than it is relative to the rest of the UK’, according to The Royal Society of Edinburgh. ‘Scotland has just 8.4% of the UK population, but its ports land over 60% of the total catch in the UK.’

Riverdale Mills Corporation (USA) is committed to producing technologically-advanced, sustainable, environmentally-friendly premium products for the Scottish fishing industries. Bertie and Elaine Gibson, owners of Norscot Creels, and William ‘Tosh’ McIntosh and his Sea Wave Crew are just a few of the dedicated trap-builders with whom Riverdale Mills partners to produce top-quality, custom fishing traps.

“Fishermen are realizing the high-cost of traditional steel creels and are looking for a more cost-effective yet durable creel,” said Bertie Gibson. “We now make all of our traps with Riverdale Mills’ Aquamesh. The traps are extremely rugged, the configurations numerous, and traps can be customized specifically for the grounds fished – all at a most reasonable cost.”

Riverdale Mills revolutionized the US lobster fishing industry in 1980, when the company created Aquamesh to build a more heavy-duty lobster trap for New England lobstermen. Today, over 80% of all lobster traps in the North America are, for good reason, built with Aquamesh. Traps made exclusively with Aquamesh typically last seven to 10 years.

“Over the past five years, we have seen a significant shift in the design and construction of Scottish fishing traps,” said Riverdale Mills CEO James Knott, Jr. “Trap builders like Bertie, Elaine and Tosh no longer use wood, plastic and steel. They are constructing the highest quality traps using Aquamesh, a galvanized-after-welded wire mesh that is manufactured with an additional layer of zinc, applied after the mesh has been welded, that seals each welded joint and eliminates the risk of premature corrosion.”

Aquamesh is specifically designed to withstand the harshest fishing conditions and will be on display at the expo.

The Sea Wave crew in Peterhead builds high-quality Aquamesh traps and cages for the crab and lobster industries, and has recently made their foray into the aquaculture industry, building shellfish cages.

“Traps made with Aquamesh last longer, which goes a long way to keeping our costs down and our business profitable,” said Tosh McIntosh’s colleague, Andrew Buchan, who recently took delivery of the 9m Twinseas potting catamaran Progress PD25 from Maver Boats.

Aquamesh is a multifunctional product. It is used worldwide in the construction of lobster and crab pots, oyster and shellfish trays, and conch and whelk traps and fish pens. Aquamesh holds the shape of traps and trays, resists algae and biofouling and is economical. The corrosion-resistant coating, that does not peel or crack, reduces the need for costly maintenance and repairs.

“We are proud to be a part of this dynamic industry and are thankful for each of our committed clients,” said Knott.

Aquamesh is also the only wire mesh fabric in the world specifically engineered to be durable, flexible and environmentally friendly. All Riverdale Mills products are made in the United States.