Wild Salmon Vs. Farmed Raised: Which is Better?
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My wife likes Salmon … that’s what she orders most when we go out to restaurants. Unfortunately, I suspect that most of the times she’s getting the farm-raised variety.
Next time we actually buy it in the store, I will encourage her to try to find wild Salmon.
Thanks,
Todd
That’s great to hear Todd. I am always skeptical when I go to a restaurant as to what kind of salmon they use. I have read that 90% of salmon the market today is in fact farm-raised. You could always ask your waiter/waitress, but the majority of the time they will probably not know.
With the demand for fish increasing along with the world’s population there will also be an increased demand for farm raised fish to satisfy the need.
While I love Salmon, and try to eat wild whenever possible, I’m hoping that we can find a way to make farm raised a more viable option in the future.
Problem with farm salmon are many. The farm fish are raised close to the rivers (in most cases)so the sea lice attacks the salmon fry on their way out of the river. Whole runs have been wiped out. Another issue is that these genetically altered “torpedoes” escape through harsh weather conditions, manmade disasters and predators.
In a protein deficient world, we do not need a protein source that requires several pounds of protein to feed a farm fish , let alone the red dye, and other “necessary” chemicals that are required.
I agree Global Patriot. The biggest problem is that salmon need such a large area and the most cost-effective manner to farm them is in the wild. Even though there are organic salmon the market, they are not necessarily safe either. I really hope as well that a good solution for this problem is discovered soon.
i always tell my boyfriend that the wild salmon and the one in the can is better ,he buy the farm raise one because it’s cheap ,but i just don’t eat it sometimes.thank you
It’s always a misconception that canned salmon isn’t that good, when in fact it is usually wild and sometimes just as good as what you can find a fish market.
Well I am not a big fish person but my family always goes for the wild salmon. Less additives!
I think I’ll omit all salmon from now on, even the wild. Can’t be sure what you’re buying, and some restaurants will lie to get you to order their fresh farmed fish. I’ll eat lower on the food chain.
Bill: I hate it when restaurants don’t indicate whether their salmon is farm-raised or wild and many times the waiters don’t know. It would be nice if restaurants and fish sellers showed exactly where their seafood came from including whether it is wild or farm-raised.
I had no clue that canned salmon is often wild! in fact, that option never even crossed my mind. For now on I will definitely keep some canned salmon in my cupboard – it’s great for salads, easy to turn into patties or meatballs and ultimately a nice alternative to canned tuna (which I know is often high in mercury and sodium content).
It’s very easy to tell wild from farm raised salmon- Wild salmon spend their short lives eating krill and swimming like heck to avoid being eaten by other ‘higher on the food chain’ predators such as bigger fish, and especially during spawning season, swimming upstream and avoiding being eaten by otters, bears, etc. who gather to feast while the masses of wild salmon swim by, often in shallower waters. All this exercise produces a lean fish, and due to the krill a much deeper color. Put side by side wild and farmed salmon don’t even look related due to the lower -almost non-existent-to-the-eye fat content of wild salmon. And the flavor is deep and has an almost piquant flavor.
What a crock. This article is simply inaccurate. As a scientist, i have done the comparisons myself and know the numbers provided in this article are not accurate. The only area that can be debated is taste and that is up to the diner. I personally prefer the taste of farmed but that is my opinion.
As for PCB’s it is completely dependent on which bodies of water the fish come.
True, farmed salmon is pigmented but i never hear people complain about the dyes used in Coke or Pepsi.
Many studies have been conducted and the fats listed in this article do not jive with multiple studies. I susoect the author of this article has an issue with farmed salmon and is trying to spread misconceptions.
I am in no way trying to spread misconceptions. I just don’t feel it’s right that farm salmon needs to be feed food so that the color of it’s flesh matches that of wild. Also, Just because people don’t complain about dyes in products doesn’t make it good for us to eat. So many products we eat have tons of preservatives and products that are not good for us, but people still eat them.
There are also environmental impacts by keeping large amounts of fish in such a small place. Your point about PCB’s is actually off. The reason for the high PCB levels has more to do with the feed they eat and the high levels of fat these fish have. PCB’s are in high concentration in the fish feed they eat and the high levels of fat allows for easier storage of the chemical.
Farmed salmon is not necessarily a bad thing, as long as it’s done sustainably, while not be detrimental to our health. At the moment, many are not and people should be aware of that. If we come up with a more sustainable way to farm salmon, I am all for it.
I found out the difference the other day when i went to Meijer and paid $20 /lb when I would normally pay far less at at Country Market. Though I was shocked at the price difference I was also shocked at how RED the more expensive meat was; it looked like a beef steak and it had a much more distinct, and better, flavor to it. I also noticed that it retained more of its natural juices when I cooked it on the grill that the other more light pink-colored salmon I was used to buying.
I will now always opt to pay the higher price for salmon.
Yes PCB’s do come from the food an animal eats but essentially that is dependant on the body of water. Farmed fish have far better Feed Conversion Ratios than their wild cousins and some companies are below the 1kg of fish meal/oil to create 1kg of muslce. Wild salmon are close to 3 and even 5 to 1 depending on the species and habitat.
Again, if you prefer wild salmon that is fine, just make sure you prefer it for the right reasons. Wild salmon is simply not able to meet consumer demand and thus farmed salmon must make up the difference.
Also the pigments used in feeds to give the orange color is chemically identical to the pigments wild fish consume in their diets.
Are you also concerned with the large amounts of fish in one place during spawnign season in the wild? Funny how the decomposing bodies of Pacific Salmon in the wild are considered “good nutrients” but areas near farmed pens are demonized.
Where i live, Farmed Salmon is available fresh year round vs wild salmon seasonally and mostly of the frozen variety creating a large fuel footprint. Humans have evolved from those who chase food to those who raise it as a matter of need and efficiency.
75% of salmon consumed in the u.s is farm raised in fact. many of the points on this article are wrong and apparently made up to support wild over farm raised. to make a long story short if humans hadnt started farm-raising salmon there would be no salmon. they would be extinct from over harvesting and man made damns making it impossible for them to return to their breeding grounds. look into more then just this one source before making your minds up about an important issue.