Is farm raised salmon healthy to eat?

1. 92

   theframjakposted 11 years ago

   Is farm raised salmon healthy to eat?
   
   I'm curious to hear if others think it is okay from a health standpoint to eat farm-raised salmon.
   
   

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2. 60

   Goody5posted 11 years ago

   I would think that it would even be healthier, since they are raised in a controlled environment.

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      celafoeposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      look it up on the net.  they are causing a lot of damage and there have been cases of disease in wild stock because of them

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3. 68

   MikeNVposted 11 years ago

   Look at what they are fed and you'll have your answer.  If you want to eat food that is colored with internally ingested food pellets then go for it. There has been plenty of research to show the problems with farm raised salmon. The farming itself is not the problem it's what they are fed.  Salmon are not genetically designed to be raised in pens eating food pellets.

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      celafoeposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      correct. and that is why the farm raised really do not have any flavor - at least they do not taste like real salmon.

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4. 93

   jansharesposted 11 years ago

   From what I recall with the research for my hub on salmon, it is okay to eat in moderation. MikeNV is correct that it's the feeding methods and not the farming. I believe the government agency reccomended for adults, one 6-8 ounce piece per month is enough.

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      celafoeposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      there is no reason to limit eating of truely wild salmon.    Maybe if you were catching 150 pounders but that is not the case. most are going to be well under 25

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5. 81

   peachpurpleposted 11 years ago

   i would say it is much healthier and safer compare to those salmon fish caught in the sea. May get sea water pollution and disease. Self breed is carefully monitor and might cost more expensive.

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   JThomp42posted 11 years ago

   The Food and Drug Administration worries that some international farmers feed salmon unapproved drugs in their feed. Farmed salmon can be higher in omega-3 fatty acids than wild caught, but it contains fewer amounts of other nutrients including selenium, protein and B vitamins. Farmed salmon also contain more chemicals in their flesh, some of them known carcinogens, although the levels are still well below levels deemed dangerous by the FDA.

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      celafoeposted 11 years agoin reply to this

      as if it is safe to believe anything the corrupt FDA says.

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7. 60

   MickSposted 11 years ago

   I'm not sure.  Farmed fish, I believe, are kept in confined pens, I don't like the idea of eating fish from a confined space where it has been swimming in its own faeces.

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   celafoeposted 11 years ago

   no    and it is dangerous to the wild salmon

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   Globetrekkermelposted 11 years ago

   I love salmon especially the farm raised ones.From what I heard, the salmon fish oil is one of the best .

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10. 89

    CZCZCZposted 11 years ago

    From a basic health standpoint you should be ok eating farmed fish, however I would never put a single bite in my mouth.  I am quite lucky as I live near some of the best salmon fishing in the world and we eat fish wild salmon on a regular basis.  Also if you have never had line and rod caught canned albacore tuna then you don't really know what good canned tuna is about.  Everything is always better when it is caught individually and processed and prepared by yourself, but that is not a luxury everyone can enjoy.  So overall I think it is safe to eat most farmed fish, otherwise it would not be allowed, of course there are instances that it is harmful, but those are likely rare cases that could happen with any of our mass produced food items.

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       theframjakposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       CZCZCZ, I envy your situation.  I lived in Alaska for a year and loved eating fresh caught salmon.  It tastes so different and so much better then the offerings available at my local grocery store.

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    Paul Duposted 11 years ago

    The nutrient profile of wild salmon is much healthier.  Farmed salmon is much higher in fat with a poorer fat profile (higher levels of saturated fat, lower levels of omega3). The pink colour in wild salmon is due to astaxanthin a powerful antioxidant, while in farmed salmon they use additives in the food to dye the flesh pink. Farmed salmon are fed antibiotics and growth simulators and eat a grain based diet, fish aren't designed to eat carbohydrate rich plants. Conversely, the meat in wild salmon has been made by natural feeding and life-cycle activity.
    Unfortunately the seas have been polluted with heavy metals, particularly mercury .  As wild salmon eat other sea life they can concentrate the pollution within thier tissues.  Farmed salmon is reared in sea pens, it does absorb some pollution but as they don't eat other sea life, they have lower levels.

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    1. 92

       theframjakposted 11 years agoin reply to this

       Good points Paul, I often forget about the heavy metal related concerns of wild fish.  Thanks for commenting.

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