May 1, 2026
Australia is a dry continent and since European colonisation, our rivers and wetlands have become highly modified to support agricultural and domestic water security throughout the whole country. Unfortunately, the dams, weirs and barrages built on our inland and coastal rivers to manage our fresh water supplies has had a negative impact on fish migration and breeding, resulting in declining fish populations. To counter this decline, government and recreational fishers have long been involved in supporting measures to improve habitat and fish passage. But these measures still fall a long way short when it comes to rebuilding fish populations to pre-colonial times, so we need to give them a hand. This is where fish hatcheries come in!
Thanks to the work of organisations like VRFish and our work with the state government, Victoria’s fish stocking program has become and remains the largest in Australia with 10-million fish now stocked annually in Victorian waterways. It’s more than all other states and territories combined and Victoria is envied when it comes to the recovery of our native inland fish. But we still have a long way to go and many improvements to make, particularly when it comes to our coastal river and estuaries and the anadromous species which have been and remain impacted in those areas.
Victoria currently produces fish at two state-owned hatcheries, Snobs Creek and Arcadia. Additional fish are still purchased from interstate, commercial hatcheries to meet fisher demands and state government commitments to fulfill its annual fish stocking plan which it develops with VRFish and many local fishing groups and environmental organisations.
Native fish, such as Murray cod and golden perch, are grown at the Arcadia native fish hatchery. VRFish successfully advocated for the purpose-built native fish hatchery to boost Victoria’s freshwater fisheries stocking program. The Arcadia native fish hatchery was opened in 2021 and has the capacity to produce up to 6 million fish each year of Murray cod and golden perch.
Built in 1948, Snobs Creek hatchery produces trout, salmon and cold-water native fish such as Macquarie perch, trout cod, and small-bodied threatened species.
Trout are one of the most popular species targeted by Victorian fishers. In fact, rainbow trout have been crowned the top freshwater fish targeted by Victorians, followed by brown trout, per consecutive past VRFish surveys. According to the Victorian Fisheries Authority’s fish stocking database, in 2025 alone, more than 1,066,000 trout were stocked in Victorian waterways.
After 75 years of operation, Snobs Creek’s aging trout production facilities are in desperate need of modernisation and upgrades to climate-proof our stocked trout fisheries and keep up with stocking demand. For that reason, VRFish is calling for investment to upgrade the out-dated facilities at the hatchery. Through investing in and improving our capacity to grow our own fish in Victoria, for Victorian waterways, we will improve recreational fishing outcomes by allowing better quality fish to be stocked across the state. We are then also less reliant on purchasing fish from commercial hatcheries.
In 2024, a purpose-built conservation hatchery at Snobs Creek was opened to restock and recover threatened freshwater species in south-eastern Australia. The conservation hatchery is a key component of the 10inTen plan, a collaboration between the Victorian Fisheries Authority and Arthur Rylah Institute (ARI), which aims to reduce the risk of extinction for threatened species, by establishing new populations of at least ten threatened species in as many years. This new, state-of-the-art facility is a stark contrast to the production capabilities at the neighbouring trout production facility.
Modernising the trout production facilities at Snobs Creek through installing cutting-edge technology, such as chillers and recirculation systems, would enhance recreational fishing experiences for Victorian fishers through improving the quality of our stocked trout fisheries.
As part of our Election Priorities, in the lead up to the Victorian state election, VRFish are advocating for a $10-million investment to modernise trout and salmonid production facilities at Snobs Creek.
Both Snobs Creek and Arcadia hatcheries produce predominately freshwaterfish species. Victoria, currently, does not have a state-owned marine or estuarine species focussed fish hatchery.
To increase Victoria’s capacity to grow our own fish and create new fishing opportunities, VRFish are calling for investment to build a new estuarine fish hatchery to grow species such as estuary perch, Australian bass, mulloway and flathead and enhance our estuarine fishing experiences.
Previously, VRFish advocated for the Victorian Government to investigate the feasibility for a marine and estuarine fish hatchery. Now, the feasibility study is currently in progress and is a first step towards building Victoria’s first marine and estuarine hatchery.
The Victorian Fisheries Authority (VFA) received a grant through the Victorian Recreational Fishing Licence Grants Program (2024/25 round) to assess the potential for establishing a Victorian Marine Hatchery for species popular with recreational anglers. The VFA are leading the study which aims to investigate factors necessary to establishing a marine hatchery such as the best location, infrastructure requirements, how long it would take to build, species mix and how many fish could be grown in the facility. So far, the study has also included hearing from interstate experts on their experience in marine hatchery planning, development and operations. VRFish is also involved in the study to represent recreational fishing interests.
We know Victorian fishers want to see an expansion of our marine and estuarine species restocking programs to create new fishing opportunities. In past VRFish surveys, it has consistently rated in the top five coastal – marine and estuarine – issues that are important to recreational fishers. Further to this, we often hear directly from recreational fishers who want to see Victoria’s stocking program grow to include more estuarine species.
VRFish are advocating for a $10-million investment to establish Victoria’s first estuarine fish hatchery.
By establishing an estuarine fish hatchery, Victoria would be supporting estuarine fish species that are impacted by changes in climate such as Australian bass, estuary perch, Mulloway and flathead. It would enhance recreational fishing opportunities along the coast and further strengthen Victoria’s stocking program.
VRFish is actively advocating to make fishing better in Victoria. This demonstrates the benefit of having a strong and independent peak body.
VRFish Election Priorities
As the peak body for recreational fishing in Victoria, VRFish advocate for recreational fishing interests.
To ensure recreational fishers priorities are strongly represented ahead of the upcoming Victorian State Election, VRFish launched our Election Priorities to advocate for better recreational fishing outcomes.
At the heart of the plan, VRFish will be advocating for better fishing experiences through five core areas – better fish, better access, better environment, better regulations and better future.
To grow new recreational fishing opportunities, VRFish is advocating for:
- $10m to establish Victoria’s first Estuarine Fish Hatchery, growing Estuary Perch, Australian Bass, Mulloway and Flathead.
- $10m to modernise trout production facilities at Snobs Creek Hatchery.
