BC Farmed salmon

[Oyster Guy]

Farmed salmon is neither safe or sustainable in any way.

It doesn't matter if it is ocean-pen raised or raised inland.

People are sheep when it comes to telling them that the food is organically grown.

As P.T. Barnum said, "There's a sucker born every minute."

And to believe that this abomination is either safe or sustainable, you have to be blind and stupid.

So much for C being a responsible advocate of sustainable seafood using this farmed "frankenfood."

[canucklehead]

So much for C being a responsible advocate of sustainable seafood using this farmed "frankenfood."

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To be fair - I don't think that 'C' made this decision in a vacuum. It is my understanding that the inland farmed fish has been given the Oceanwise seal of approval. Is it an issue of intensive farming processes or genetic manipulation of the inland fish farms?

The Swift Aqauculture inland fish farm in Agasiz is part of the Circle Farm Tours. Has anyone been on the tours? Here's a quote from the Straight:

"Perhaps the province's most unique encounter with food is at Swift Aqua Culture (2244 Wilson Road, Agassiz; 604-796-3497). Gentleman-scientist Bruce Swift, a refugee from conventional fish-farming, has outfitted the former dairy barn on his property with 20-cubic-metre tanks filled with pure well water and a few thousand coho salmon he's raised from sprat. Swift feeds them a leading-edge organic veggie/soy diet to bulk up to a lean one to one-and-a-half kilos, perfect for the grill or the pan... Swift's operation reclaims its water in an eco-friendly, sustainable system (by all means, ask him about it) that also produces aquaponic wasabi plants. For $3 to $5, grate and discover the complex flavour of real wasabi root and toss its spicy sweet leaves into those mixed salad greens."

[Sam Salmon]

Oyster Guy is being a tad harsh-Bruce Swift is a sincere and capable individual.

The problem with land based operations is that they are quite expensive-there are no perfect solutions just people slogging along.

[Badiane]

Bruce Swift is indeed a sincere and capable individual. And very generous with his time and knowledge.

Unfortunately he is not going to be selling any salmon this summer. He is in the middle of renovations to the fish production facilities. He is still producing wasabi tho, so is still a worthy stop on the tour. We are fortunate enough to be regular shoppers at many of the stops on the five area farm tours - kind of makes up for never getting to go to a decent restaurant.

[Mallet]

Another wrinkle in the farmed salmon story (the study was done using BC farms), which appeared in Science today:

abstract]

Rather than benefiting wild fish, industrial aquaculture may contribute to declines in ocean fisheries and ecosystems. Farm salmon are commonly infected with salmon lice (Lepeophtheirus salmonis), which are native ectoparasitic copepods. We show that recurrent louse infestations of wild juvenile pink salmon (Oncorhynchus gorbuscha), all associated with salmon farms, have depressed wild pink salmon populations and placed them on a trajectory toward rapid local extinction. The louse-induced mortality of pink salmon is commonly over 80% and exceeds previous fishing mortality. If outbreaks continue, then local extinction is certain, and a 99% collapse in pink salmon population abundance is expected in four salmon generations. These results suggest that salmon farms can cause parasite outbreaks that erode the capacity of a coastal ecosystem to support wild salmon populations.

[Anchoress]

From CBC.ca: Salmon farms destroying wild salmon populations in Canada: study

Salmon farming operations have reduced wild salmon populations by up to 70 per cent in several areas around the world and are threatening the future of the endangered stocks, says a new scientific study....