Frödinflies donates 500.000 SEK to The Baltic Salmon Fund

From left: The Foundation’s honorary chairman Claes Bourghardt, H.M. King Carl XVI Gustaf, Mikael Frödin, and Jakob Frödin. Copyright: The Royal Court of Sweden

We are at a crossroads – our last wild salmon stocks are under severe pressure, and the number of spawning pairs is declining at an alarming rate. Hydropower expansion, commercial overfishing, the salmon farming industry, and trawling, which depletes the oceans of the salmon’s staple food, are the main causes. There is a lack of political will and decisive action. The scientific community agrees: wild salmon are severely threatened and face extinction.

The sport fishing community is a positive force in the pursuit of sustainable fishing. The path forward requires quotas and stricter regulations. Catch and release is an essential part of the long-term sustainable use of wild salmon, and sport fishing tourism targeting wild salmon plays a crucial role in the livelihoods of remote river communities.

Fishing for wild salmon as food is no longer a sustainable practice. The Baltic Salmon Fund works to reduce and redirect fishing efforts to designated terminal fishing areas, where only farmed compensation salmon is caught instead of wild, naturally spawning salmon. A key part of the foundation’s work is leasing fishing rights in areas where wild salmon are harvested. This is one of the most effective ways to quickly reduce pressure on vulnerable wild salmon stocks.

Mikael Frödin and Frödinflies have been fighting for wild salmon since the early 1980s. This has included investigative articles, educational lectures, documentaries, and informative media, as well as direct actions such as protests against the salmon farming industry and activism that has led to legal battles. Frödinflies' fight for wild salmon has always been about action, not just words.

Now, Mikael Frödin and Frödinflies are taking another step to protect wild salmon by donating 500.000 SEK to the Baltic Salmon Fund. This donation is earmarked for securing fishing rights along the Baltic coast, over 100 salmon traps will be removed which is expected to save thousands of wild salmon. The donation is linked to a special edition fly reel series – SALAR Wild Salmon Series (WSS) – where the symbolism of a leaping wild salmon is unmistakable. Read more about the reels and the donations through this link.

The Foundation’s honorary chairman Claes Bourghardt with the 500.000 SEK donation from Frödinflies. Copyright: The Baltic Salmon Foundation

Mikael Frödin comments:
"We are a small company – if we can do this, so can others! It is time for the sport fishing industry to take responsibility and do what it can to reverse this negative trend. Otherwise, there will soon be no wild salmon left to fish. Our goal is a Swedish coast entirely free from wild salmon exploitation – and with sufficient resources, we can achieve it. When politicians fail to show courage and take responsibility, we cannot just stand by and watch – we must act now to save wild salmon for future generations.”

The purpose of The Baltic Salmon Foundation is to promote a long-term sustainable management of wild salmon and trout stocks in the Baltic Sea and its waters.

The foundation’s vision is to regain self-reproducing stocks in the original salmon and trout rivers of the Baltic Sea. Strong stocks provide attractive sport fishing and create the conditions for job opportunities through developed fishing tourism.

What The Baltic Salmon Fund does:

• Primarily, leasing fishing grounds to remove traps and fishing gear, 2011 there were 643 traps and in 2021 there are 281 traps.
• Involved in a number of organisations and associations to promote the vision of a healthy living Baltic Sea.
• Educating and lecturing about wild salmon, wild trout and our sensitive ecosystem.
• Cooperating with Sweden’s administrative organisations.

The Swedish King, H.M. King Carl XVI Gustaf, is the patron of The Baltic Sea Salmon Foundation.

“From The Baltic Salmon Fund, we are extremely grateful for the support we are now receiving for Baltic salmon. The weak return of salmon to our rivers and streams in recent years makes our work more important than ever. These funds enable us to step up our efforts to reduce the number of salmon traps along our coasts, which currently threaten several of our wild salmon stocks. They also allow us, as a significant force backed by all the management organisations of the Baltic rivers, to continue our work influencing decision-makers to stop the unsustainable fishing of herring and sprat, which is devastating the entire Baltic Sea ecosystem.

Frödinflies’ initiative gives us hope. We hope that more companies, dependent on a healthy sea and the presence of salmon and trout in our rivers and streams for future generations, will follow suit and support our ongoing work.”

Thomas Johansson
General Secretary
The Baltic Salmon Fund