FARMEDSALMON
FARMED ATLANTIC SALMON: FROM THE OCEAN TO YOUR TABLE My Origins There are many different types of salmon. There are around 11 types, and even within those groups, there are further classifications. I am an Atlantic salmon, and I am grown on a farm, not wild caught. This might seem relatively simple, but there are many steps in this process that you may not even think about. From the fertilizing of roe to incubation to the processing to the shipping, the list of steps goes on and on. It is not a very comfortable process for me, but it gets you the food you desire.
Very very few of us farmed salmon have the opportunity to participate in reproduction. In the wild, most salmon who survive up to a certain point have the opportunity to reproduce. However, on a salmon farm, few salmon live to an age at which they can reproduce, as we are tastier when we are young. A select few are chosen to be kept alive to reproduce. Then, they go through a conveyor belt where the males and females are separated. After separation, both males and females are cut open, and their insides are poured into a bucket and mixed together. The roe are then transferred to an incubator.
My Diet Wild Atlantic Salmon's diets consist of other fish for the most part, along with insects and plankton. Farmed Atlantic salmon, however, have different diets. Our diets are designed as substitutes for these nutrients, but only using terrestrially originating plants, which is not as healthy for us. In addition to not being great for us, uneaten plant matter often sinks out of our nets and throws off the surrounding ecosystem by introducing a new food source. Occasionally, we even escape our nets and can wreak havoc on a delicate ecosystem.
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FARMED ATLANTIC SALMON GEOGRAPHICAL ORIGINS By TJ Salmon
Humans have hunted salmon for thousands of years. Bones found in a cave suggests that humans have been eating us for over 5,000 years. However, since the mid 1970's, people have been practicing what is called salmon farming. Basically, we will live in nets the majority of our lives until we are ready to be harvested. It is more complicated than this though. After incubation, we are transferred to nets where we live for most of our lives until we are ready to be harvested. There are a number of methods that are used for killing us. Contrary to popular belief, salmon do feel pain, so many previous methods are not being used anymore. These methods include electrocution, suffocation, clubbing on the head, and a variety of other things. After death, we are processed. This can mean a variety of things. The first step is to clean and dispose of the parts that aren't required for a specific cut of meat. Then, we are preserved with a variety of methods so that they will not spoil during transportation. This can include salting, canning, or just icing during transportation. Personally, I was iced in order to stay fresh during transportation. I was then sold to a middle man, Outback Fish, who then distributed me to Happy Foods. From Happy Foods, I was sold to the Jimenez household, who uses salmon for a variety of things.
25 FARMED SALMON | ISSUE 05
Fertilization Process