Why is farmed salmon on the “Avoid” list?
Currently, farmed salmon are raised in coastal net pens, where they’re in direct contact with the surrounding marine environment. This open access results in at least five distinct problems when farming salmon, that often aren’t native to the area: • When farmed salmon escape from ocean pens, they threaten wild salmon and other fish by competing with them for food and spawning grounds. • Waste from most salmon farms is released directly into the ocean. • Parasites and diseases from farmed salmon can spread to wild fish swimming near the farms. • Salmon farmers may use pesticides and antibiotics to control outbreaks of disease among the fish. When consumers eat this fish, the residues from the chemicals may affect their health or interfere with medicines they’re taking. • It takes three pounds of wild fish to grow one pound of farmed salmon. As a result, farming salmon actually uses more fish than it produces, which puts more pressure on wild populations.
