Atlantic farmed salmon = grey flesh + pink dye + antibiotics
October 16, 2007
Posted by CindyW in : Fresh Look , trackback
Last week I had dinner with a friend who was 6 months pregnant. Like a good expecting mother, she duly added fish to her diet to help fetal and neonatal development. She picked grilled salmon from the dinner menu. The detailed description of the entrée indicated it was Atlantic salmon. Having heard some nasty stuff about Atlantic salmon which were primarily farm-raised, I dissuaded her from ordering the entrée and promised to find more facts rather than relying on my not-so-reliable memory. So here it goes:
Wild salmon versus farmed salmon
Wild salmon live in salt water and spawn in freshwater. They forage in the open ocean for small crustaceans, herring, and other small fish. Once they start the upstream journey in freshwater to spawn, they stop feeding and rely on their stored energy. The longer and more difficult the journey is, the more energy is needed. The energy in the form of fat and oil, including omega-3 fatty acids, is what make salmon succulent and scrumptious.
Natural carotene pigment in Microalgae -> ingested by krill -> eaten by salmon -> naturally pink flesh
Farmed salmon, on the other hand, swim around in enclosed pens with thousands of other salmon. They are fed formulated pellets, other fish, or sometimes even corn. Naturally their flesh is gray. To make it more attractive, pigments are added to the feed to give them pink-colored meat. Want light pink, dark pink or something in between? How about light steel blue color? It matches with my dining room…
Grey flesh -> added pink dye of your choice -> designer pink flesh
Pacific salmon versus Atlantic salmon
These days, wild salmon come mostly from the Pacific (with a majority from Alaska). You may have heard some of the five species: coho, sockeye, king (sometimes also called Chinook), pink, and chum. Pacific Salmon season generally runs from May to September, depending on the specific species.
Once upon a time there were wild Atlantic salmon. Unfortunately most of their spawning habitat has been destroyed by pollution, logging, damming, and other impediments. There are still very limited wild Atlantic salmon left. However majority of the commercially available Atlantic salmon are farmed, and yes fed the pink dye.
Other reasons farmed Atlantic salmon are not rosy as their ingested dyes
- Wild salmon just taste better. Try it for yourself if you don’t believe me. I’ve had both, and the differences in taste and aroma are obvious even to a non-foodie like me.
- Farmed salmon are raised in the marine equivalent of factory farms. The concentrated waste from the pens spoils the local marine environment and spreads disease, such as sea lice. Yuck!
- Much like factory farmed beef industry, farmed salmon are administered antibiotics.
- Farmed salmon have been found to contain significantly higher concentrations of PCBs, dioxin and other contaminants.
So, when you buy salmon or order at a restaurant, always ask where it is from, especially in the off season. I for one, will not spend money to eat pink dye, no matter what shade it is.
CindyW at Organicpicks
Related Post:
Eat sustainably from the ocean
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Comments»
Look like I have to be carefully with my Scottish farmed Salmons in the future. They have been known to cause pollution. … I do wonder how much a wild Salmon costs relative to a farmed Salmon …
Great post. In a similar vein, pastured, grass-fed beef
also have high levels of omega-3s. I think I read that
in The Omnivore’s Dilemma. Turns out that essential
fatty acids might be more a result of the life-style of
the animal than the type of animal. He proposes that
in a few years, salmon fat could be just as bad for you
as any other type of animal fat if we are eating factory
farm raised animals.
Hi, I have three posts today on stats and other info about farmed fish, including salmon. I was sick last night probably from food poisoning, but haddock and shrimps, not salmon, so I went and looked up some stuff I had previously heard on salmon and it took off from there. Hope you and your readers find it useful.
http://envirostats.info/2007/10/16/0488/
http://envirostats.info/2007/10/16/0489/
http://envirostats.info/2007/10/16/0490/
Lies and more lies, shame on you Cindy W,
Wild Salmon contains equal or more PCB’s than Farmed Salmon, actually levels of PCB in Farmed Salmon today are decreasing due to the control in the feed. But PCB in wild and Farmed are less than 20 parts pre billion and the FDA tolerance of 2000. Also what the liar does not say that butter, milk and even breast milk from a nursing mother has more PCB’s than Salmon wild or farmed.
Wild Salmon is raised also in farms, more than half of “Wild” Salmon starts in hatchery with the same controls of Farmed Salmon and then released.
There is no colorant given to Farmed Salmon, another lie, Farmed Salmon is given a carotene, (Astaxanthin). the same carotene that wild salmon eats, but this is man made, the same comparison of vitamin C is man made and an orange comes form a tree. Nobody is saying that Vitamin C is bad for you. Actually the same Astaxanthin given to Farmed Salmon is sold in vitamin stores for human consumption because this carotene is good for you. Do a google search on Astaxanthin.
Another lie: sea Lice are found in most fish, including wild Salmon and many other species, these are found on the skin of the fish, and probably have been dead on many grills “Yuck”?
Shame on people like Cindy W who scare away pregnant women from Farmed Salmon, the safest, freshest and healthiest protein available today.
The big risk as every professional scientist and doctors are saying all over the world is not to eat fish. Finally the Norwegians have been eating Farmed Salmon over a century, check their health statistics, fortunately liars like Cindy W in Norway go to jail for hurting the consumer.
But don’t believe a word what I say go to the Harvard school of Public health website or the Institute of medicine and find out for yourself.
You will find all links at http://www.seafoodandhealth.org/
Rafael, I don’t know what your association is with the farmed salmon industry. But it seems that you have a vested interest. Frankly I am suspicious of any websites (including the one your provided) that do not provide information on who they are and what their ultimate mission is.
If we just ignored the environmental impact of current farmed salmon (this is a huge factor in my own decision of not consuming farmed salmon), many media and non-profit organizations have written extensively about the risks of the current salmon farming practice and health issues. Let me just name a few: NY Times, Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, Sierra Club…
http://www.washingtonpost.com/ac2/wp-dyn/A733-2004Jan8?language=printer detailed the higher toxins in farmed salmon
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?file=/c/a/2004/01/09/MNG6C46KRV1.DTL pretty much said the same thing
http://www.wired.com/techbiz/media/news/2004/01/61839 was titled “Farmed Salmon poses risks” and specified that “the average dioxin level in farmed-raised salmon was as 11 times higher than that in wild salmon.”
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/04/10/dining/10salmon.html said “farmed fish are fed artificial coloring that makes them pink”
I will stop citing well-established media. You got the point.
And Rafael, farmed salmon are not “released” into the wild. They ESCAPE into the wild and threaten the future viability of dwindling wild population.
I do hope however that the salmon farming practice will improve to the point that it is acceptable to me and the consumers that care.
Why not answer the lies?
Color? Sea Lice? PCB’s?
I don’t work for seafoodandHealth.org, that conference was sponsored NOAA. I only provided the website because the links to Harvard and Institute of medicine studies are there. Link below.
As for the websites? If you don’t know Harvard is a very prestigious university in Massachusetts and the Institute of medicine is the most prestigious medical authority in this country.
On your recommendations I only see articles on newspapers and written by who? Don’t believe everything papers write, they said that Iraq was a threat to us. Like you say Farmed Salmon is bad for you.
As for the environment issue, there are of course some issues that some salmon farmer needs to improve especially on certain countries. But don’t generalize the whole Salmon Farming industry.
There are actually Organic certified Salmon Farms in Ireland and Scotland, and certified by many European countries.
But Again Farmed Salmon is the safest and healthiest protein available today, highest in Omega 3 and lowest in Mercury than any fish, and again check the data.
Wild Salmon is very good, but too expensive for many Americans and only available fresh in the summer.
Notes of clarification:
1. I am not against farmed fish, if it is done right.
2. If you actually read my post, you will see that my concerns are specifically about Atlantic farmed salmon. So your reference to Norwegian, Scotland and Ireland farmed salmon seems rather irrelevant.
With all due respect Mr Puga, I would trust NY times, Washington Post, San Francisco Chronicle, Monterey Bay Aquarium, NRDC, Sierra Club, Seaweb much more so than the information you provided. Please, since you are a part of the Atlantic salmon-farming industry, I don’t think your statement “farmed salmon is the safest and healthiest protein available today” can be taken seriously.
Color, sea lice, PCB, all of these have been reported by the above media and organizations. Just Google it. I cited a few in my earlier response. I don’t need to present 35 more links in this comment.
But I will leave you with a very detailed score by Blue Ocean Institute: http://www.blueocean.org/seafood/species/29.html Atlantic farmed salmon scored 0.95 out of 4 in terms of sustainability. It gives ample reasons for me not to purchase any Atlantic farmed salmon, as the farming practice stands today. Oh yeah, please see the sea lice reference there.
If Atlantic salmon farming practice improves to an acceptable level, I will gladly buy it and tell my friends, pregnant or not.
Rafael, read the text in the three links I provided in Comment 3, and not just the stats. Farmed salmon has not been farmed sustainably and responsibly for the most part to this point. One of the study is for Scots farmed salmon so even they aren’t safe from poor practice. Even without the sources I had found by chance on the same issue at about the same time, Cindy’s got better points and sources than you do, I’m afraid.
You said you are not against Farmed Salmon? Your whole article is full of lies about “Farmed salmon”
Norwegian, Scottish and Irish all are Atlantic Salmon. If you are that ignorant why write that whole article?.
Is it unethical and immoral to write scaring people of an issue you don’t know?
How many people will not eat farm salmon because of your lies?
Do you realize the harm you are doing perpetuating lies?
As for the environmental issues of SOME Salmon farms I am not denying it. But this has nothing to do with being the healthiest protein available to middle class America, rich people like you can pay for $15 a Lb for wild Salmon.
Good that you believe the newspapers more that the scientist next time you are sick find the cure at the Washington Post, as for me I do believe the JAMA, ( Journal of American Medicine) or the Harvard School of Public health or the Institute of Medicine. They seem to know and do the scientific research to support their claims.
If you think Salmon Farming is not sustainable then write about that, but it is immoral to lie about the safety and health benefit of Farmed Salmon.
Dear Minh
Whoever you are, I don’t know why you don’t put your real full name? Something hiding?
I am sorry but your “anecdotal” sites are with the same validity that CindyW writes not even knowing that “Atlantic salmon” is the one raised in Scotland or Norway. So if Cindy can write and lie so much why not the others. Only reputable medical organizations can judge the safety of foods.
As for the environmental issue, I agree but this is a totally different expertise and for that why not read what WWF one of the most reputable organizations has to say about Farmed Salmon?
As for Aquariums there are different views, again related to the sustainable issue, and the Monterrey says one thing but the New England Aquarium says something else in there “Seafood choices”.
But once again I am not denying that there are environmental issues that need to be addressed, and if you want to have an honest dialog about it fine, but don’t lie about the food safety. Again Farmed Salmon is the safest and healthiest protein you can buy today in a supermarket where the great majority of Americans buy their food, (including Whole Foods that also sells Farmed Salmon).
Scaring them away is a crime.
Think of the effect of what you do next time you read an alarming news about obesity, or the latest research from pregnant women that been sacred to eat fish harming their babies brain development.
More and more has been proven that brain development is linked to Omega 3 consumption.
I will gladly share with you research done buy the United nations, the governments of Germany, Norway and even have a new one from Australia.
Finally did you go to?
http://www.iom.edu/CMS/3788/23788/37679.aspx
Mr Puga,
I have realized that our conversation has become non-constructive and is bordering on incivility. So further discussion regarding the health issues of Atlantic farmed salmon will bear no fruit other than exchanging links from our own trusted sources. It certainly is not productive to our readers, you or I.
However, I want to extend you an invitation to have a dialog regarding how the Atlantic salmon farming is improving its environmental footprint. Here is my email to you. If you are interested, please respond to my email.
********************************************
Dear Mr Puga,
Thanks for your participation in the discussion on our farmed salmon blog entry. I think at this point, it has become nonconstructive and is borderline on civility. Regarding the health issues with Atlantic farmed salmon (none in your view), frankly we rely on different information sources and are never going to agree with each other. I, as an individual consumer who desires to learn about what she eats. And I will continue to share what I have learned with my friends, family, and our readers.
However it seems that we both agree on one issue: When it comes to the environment, the current practice of Atlantic salmon farming leaves a lot to be desired. I, as well as our readers will be very interested in learning what the industry is doing to improve its environmental footprint. If you are interested in addressing this topic, please let me know. We will print your perspective in full length.
thanks and best regards,
CindyW
Civility?
I see that you are not open for discussion but only to impose your position. (lies)
Your sources: articles from papers.
My sources: Harvard, ONU, WWF, National Academy of Sciences, American Heart Association etc.
Keep lying and hurting consumers with anecdotal lies. You are not interested to explore anything.
By the way this was at The Washington Post
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/10/19/AR2007101902609_2.html?sid=ST2007102200863
Civility indeed. Calling people with a different opinion lying, criminal and immoral is a form of incivility last time I check.
If you truly believe what you believe, instead of just marketing for Salmon Of The Americas, I suggest the most effective way is to challenge NYTimes, Sierra Club, NRDC, or Monterey Bay Aquarium directly. I suspect that they have a little more influence over consumers’ seafood choices than me.
Best of Luck
3 days ao I would have been arguing with Rafael, but I actually toured an atlantic salmon farm in Ocean Falls BC. I saw how they farmed and what they fed the smolts. I am not a scientist, but I do eat and fish for salmon. I have seen the sea lice and as often as not it is on wild salmon, I did not see any on the farmed fish. I didnt go to ocean falls to see the farm, but I spent an evening with the manager of the facility. (he has a place next to where we stayed. I can not site sources or articles, but I can tell if someone is honest and genuine. I have found out a lot of the alaskan wild salmon are started in similar pens. They are then released into the wild and screw up the genetics of the natural fish. THe Kenai are having a problem with this.
Farmed salmon have improved. PCB’s are trending down. We can not improve the wild salmon runs by eating more wild salmon.
You must look to see who is writing the articles against the farmers. What are their interests? Is it possible the farms are getting better? It is really a complex issue. Have an open mind. I did not, but my trip up north has motivated me to look at atlantic farmed salmon.
Norm, thanks for you comment. It is very hearty to know that the salmon farm you visited was to your satisfaction. And thanks for sharing. I completely agree with you regarding always having to know the angles articles try to play. As well, I am also very careful with information from “non-profit” organizations, as illustrated by the fishy story last week: http://www.npr.org/blogs/news/2007/10/theres_something_fishy_about_m.html
Keep an open mind.
cheers
CindyW
Rafael,
As someone representing industry, I would have expected a more above the belt posting from you. It appears from reading CindyW’s short bio that she once worked in corporate America. She was simply stating the obvious - your response was not of the caliber one would expect.
You, as someone representing large industry should know that it is a PR faux-paus to use words like lie, crime, scaring when addressing someone’s opinions - someone whose agenda seems to be to help people make more informed decisions about their health and the sustainability of food types on this planet.
YOU, as someone representing the counter-opinion in this discussion had the opportunity to respond in a much more level-headed manner and not resort to emotional-charged mud-slinging and name calling.
Perhaps you should attend some public relations training to learn more effective communication techniques to apply to your role of protecting industry? There may be some good firms out there representing tobacco or oil interests that could certainly help you polish your responses and arguments.
Um, why not get your Omega-3’s from the source, without harming fish and contributing to the over-exploitation of fisheries worldwide? Just as the pigment of wild salmon comes from algae, so do the Omega-3’s. Udo’s Choice 3•6•9 and DHA blend are my favorites.
As far as healthy—lean—protein, nothing beats rice & beans, quinoa, tempeh, and the tons of low-fat or fat free protein sources in the vegetable kingdom. As the China Study shows, plant protein is best in the same way that complex carbs are the best carbs.
Also, it should be noted that exposing Omega-3 fatty acids to high heat destroys them. This is why you do not cook with flax oil, which happens to also be a rich source of Omega-3’s.
San Jose Mercury News ran an interesting piece on farmed salmon on Wednesday: http://www.mercurynews.com/lifestyle/ci_7327947?nclick_check=1
Apparently one variety of farmed salmon has won over some top U.S. chefs and a Scottish environmental organization - The Loch Duart salmon raised off the coast of Scotland. The article states that the farmed salmon “often are raised using pesticides, antibiotics, and chemical additives that change the fish’s normal gray pallor into the more familiar orange hue.” Apparently Loch Duart farm exercises better practices - even allowing 1 of its 3 sites to remain fallow every year. However a senior research scientist with the Environmental Defense Fund says that there is no producers at the moment that she would be ready to recommend. A rule of thumb she says is “European and Canadian salmon farms are managed in a more environmentally friendly way than Chilean ones…”
While I am glad to see salmon farming improvement in at least one farm (albeit in Scotland), I still find it too difficult to pick out one good one out of 100 bad ones. Don’t think my local grocers could tell me exactly which farm the salmon come from. Until most of the farms reach the standard of Loch Duart or better, I am staying away.
Shesh!!! Such negativity!! Does anyone know anything about so called “organic” farmed raised salmon? Is it a little better?
Hi all,
I’m jumping into this late - and in the interest of transparency - from CleanFish, Inc., a sustainable seafood company that is working to improve the health of humans and our oceans by finding and supporting the best producers of farmed and wild seafood around. We bring Loch Duart salmon to the United States and are proud to represent a farm that sets exceptionally high standards for environmental sustainability, animal welfare and the quality of their fish.
Some realities to add some dimension to this debate:
Salmon consumption is on the rise world-wide.
Salmon farmers are meeting this need, and many of them are doing so in ways that sacrifice the well-being of animals, consumers, and the environment.
There are salmon farms that are farming responsibly, one of which is Loch Duart.
Sadly, the farmed vs. wild debate is not as simple as it appears.
Be a part of the solution. I urge you to purchase your fish from those farmers working to improve their practices in an industry so riddled with problems. If you are interested in supporting the efforts of Loch Duart - and trying an exceptionally delicious fish, good enough for top chefs - ask for it by name, or look for point of sale materials at the seafood counter. If these aren’t available, ask your grocer where the farmed salmon comes from, do your research, and vote with your fork!
When wild salmon isn’t available here in San Francisco, I buy Loch Duart farmed salmon from Calmart grocery store. Local grocers often do know where their farmed salmon comes from. I guess I’d think twice about shopping anywhere they didn’t know. What I don’t know, and am trying to find out, is whether farmed fish of any sort has a high level of Omega-3 fatty acids.
I lived in Chile from 1992 to 2007, next to a fish farm, I saw the complete lack of any sanitary controls, the illegal dumping, use of antibiotics and chemicals, the utter disregard for the ecology and other peoples rights. When these matters were brought to the attention of the government. I was told that I did not know how things were done in Chile. I was told by the fish farm owners that as an american I had no rights in Chile. There are a thousand reasons not to eat farmed salmon from Chile. Chilean salmon has the biggest lobby in Chile, the truth very rarely is heard. I am pleased to see the industry now being judged outside their influence. BW Rio Carhuello
Bruce, thanks for your first-hand perspective. Unfortunately much, if not most of the farmed salmon, is imported from Chile these days. And we have these industry interest groups aggressively marketing their “products”. Incidentally, I heard a program on NPR today which led me to the environmental defense fund website, where various fish were categorized into Eco-Best, Eco-Ok, and Eco-Worst. Farmed Salmon is still solidly in the Worst category.
So this Rafael character must be some kind of joke. There is, in fact sustainable farmed fisheries out there.
That’s where Whole Foods gets their farmed raised fish from. They’re usually from Norway. The fish geet fed food that basically floats, so they are encouraged to be top feeders, as opposed to bottom feeders. There is a better food given to the fish, a more natural food. they live closer to their lifestyle on the wild….do I need to go on?
Rafael, I have not seen even whole foods farm-raised look nearly as good as they’re wild-caught sockeye. (Which is about 8.99 a pound, while the Farmed is 12.99)