SOME £47.6 million was ploughed into the Scottish salmon industry in 2011, in its second successive record year for investment, as job numbers leapt 13% to 2124.

Almost all the £92m invested during the past two years has been injected into the Highlands & Islands.

Investment over the past five years totals £205.5m, according to figures from the Scottish Salmon Producers' Organisation (SSPO).

The biggest single beneficiary of investment is the Shetland Islands, which has received one-third of the money spent on investment in the past five years.

But the pattern appears to be shifting, with the salmon industry in the Highlands receiving £15.4m of investment last year, or 32.4% of the total, ahead of Shetland at 26.8%, according to the SSPO's industry research report published yesterday.

Scott Landsburgh, chief executive of SSPO, said: "At a time of slow growth in the global economy, the Scottish salmon sector continues to be a source of major capital investment and new opportunities."

The industry is in buoyant mood after seeing production rise to its highest level in six years and accelerating export growth, which is now at a record level.

This has been supported by a trade deal with China last year that allows direct shipments from Scotland to the world's most populous nation.

The SSPO estimated that 506 jobs have been created over the past three years and that many thousands of additional positions are supported in the industry's supply chain.

Of the 2124 jobs in SSPO member companies, some 289 (14%) were held by non-UK citizens and 90% were full time.

The majority of employees continue to be located in the Highlands and Islands, with 1939 posts in Argyll & Bute, Highland, Orkney, Shetland and the Western Isles. These areas have also benefited from the bulk of new jobs.

Mr Landsburgh said: "From speaking to employers it is clear there is a desire to increase job creation, with 86% of companies planning to both increase staff and grow production sustainably over the next five years.

"This is great news for the Highlands and Islands and the wider Scottish economy, and we must work with Government to maintain the high levels of confidence in our industry."

The SSPO estimates the direct economic impact of the salmon farming sector to have increased by 23% as total gross pay from member companies rose to £53.7m.

Some £46.7m, representing 92% of the total gross salaries, was paid to employees in remote communities of the Highlands and Islands.

Using the Scottish Government's estimate that every £1 that is paid to employees in the fish-farming sector in the Highlands and Islands is estimated to generate a further £4.58 in the local economy, this was worth £214m to economies in the region.

Spending on suppliers and services by the salmon sector increased 22% during 2011 to £435.7m. This follows a 24% increase in 2010.

The industry estimates that the bulk of this, some £320m, was spent in Scotland including £144m in the Highlands and Islands.