Salmon is the second most consumed seafood in the US, right between shrimp and canned tuna. You probably know that some of the salmon we eat is wild caught, and others farmed. But what is the difference between farm raised fish vs wild caught fish, and should you care? The answer is yes. You should care very much.
What’s the Difference Between Farm-Raised and Wild-Caught Fish?
When you are talking about farm raised vs wild caught, the first thing you should look at is the environment in which they grow up, and the food that they eat. For instance, wild salmon begin their lives in rivers, and migrate to the oceans where they feed on a natural diet of smaller fish and crustaceans. Their bright red-orange color and complex taste comes from their healthy, natural diet. Farmed raised salmon, on the other hand, are raised in nets and pens, feeding on commercially processed foods that are artificially enhanced with red pigments… otherwise their flesh would be grey. There is nothing more important than the quality of the fish’s diet to the quality of the fish on your plate… or your palate.
Why is Wild-Caught Fish Better?
If you are still undecided about whether it is worth seeking out wild caught fish vs farmed fish, these facts might sway you.
- Fish farms can be bad for the environment. The uneaten food, antibiotics, pesticides and feces of the fish pollute the surrounding water with nutrients, pesticides and chemicals. Farmed fish can also escape into the wild, where they can out-compete wild fish for food and spread diseases for which the wild fish cannot fight.
- Wild caught fish support American Fishermen and fishing communities, and at Sea to Table we are really into that.
- When it comes to the nutritional content of farmed fish vs wild fish, wild fish wins hands down. Farmed salmon, for instance, has almost twice as much saturated fat and 50% more calories per serving than wild fish
So if you are into keeping both yourself and the planet healthy, wild caught fish is the way to go. Sea to Table only sells wild caught fish from well-managed US fisheries, flash-frozen at the source at the peak of freshness. Shop our selection of wild fish now.
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