April 25, 2014
The following is a summary of news items about Salmon Farming we found of interest this week:
Monterey Bay Seafood Watch Program:
Of "fairness", balance & equal standards when assessing so-called “wild”, and farmed salmon or COLOUR BLIND?
Why was a “Yellow”/”Best Alternative” rating recommendation for BC farmed salmon not released since 2012, and ‘reviewed’-down many times until it became “Red”/"Avoid"???
An Open Letter to the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch programme and to its funder, The David and Lucile Packard Foundation.
By Bertrand Charron, SeafoodIntelligence.com Editor (April 23, 2014)
SeafoodIntelligence.com can finally reveal the outcome of the Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch programme’s lengthy and convoluted assessment process re. the salmon farming industries in British Columbia (BC, Canada), Scotland, Norway and Chile. It's “confidential” but... they do ALL “fail”; “un-surprisingly” will say some (for various reasons) – and are all to be granted by the forthcoming Seafood Watch reports a ‘Red’ i.e. “Avoid” recommendations.
Monterey Bay flip-flops on farmed salmon sustainability
Intrafish, April 23, 2014
A recent draft of Seafood Watch ranking put BC farmed salmon in the 'good alternative' column, but an unexplained change of heart now likely means aquarium will continue to encourage consumers to avoid farmed salmon altogether.
Blogs of Interest
Farmed salmon is only 3% of global aquaculture production — so why is it all we ever hear about?
2014/04/22 Salmon Farm Science
Sometimes we need to step back and look at the big picture, put things in context and re-evaluate what we think we know. When we look at the global picture of aquaculture production, it’s quite interesting. If it wasn’t for aquaculture, we would have wiped out wild fisheries decades ago. But as it stands today, (or at least as of 2012, the most recent year for which complete data is available), aquaculture produces nearly 67 million metric tonnes of seafood. That is enough to feed every single person on this planet two meals of seafood every week for one year. Aquaculture CAN feed the world. But in North America, “aquaculture” sometimes gets used as a dirty word, and people have been primed to think bad thoughts when they hear “fish farming.” And the worst associations are with salmon farms...
Sweet Spring finally sprung
Posted by Alaska Salmon Ranching, April 22, 2014
Well, it seems that the story we broke in February has come to its logical conclusion. IntraFish reports today that Sweet Spring salmon company is in “transition”. In other words, they’re transitioning into going out of business. They’ve downsized staff, the CEO has quite, they’ve sold off equipment and stopped growing fish for market...Oh, and in related news, another one of our land-based salmon farming features made the news today: Namgis salmon farm.
Keeping the majority silent
Act for Aquaculture, April 23, 2014
We at Act for Aquaculture received a letter recently from a Nova Scotia businessman who said he’s a big supporter of salmon farming, but feels the “anti” groups might target his business if he speaks out in support of the industry. Unfortunately, we hear that a lot. The few but vocal critics like to paint salmon farmers as big, bad, uncaring corporations. The truth is, salmon farmers are residents of coastal communities in New Brunswick, Nova Scotia and Newfoundland. That includes owners, management, farm workers, processors and support people. They’re mostly people who grew up in our small communities and who have been working on the water or in fish plants all their lives.
More on Skuna Bay Salmon and the Kentucky Derby
SKUNA BAY SALMON KENTUCKY DERBY CHEF CHALLENGE FINALISTS EMERGE
Original 28 Chef Competitors pared down to two: Edward Sura from Perennial Virant, Chicago, IL & Sarah Schafer from Irving Street Kitchen, Portland, OR
Gold River, B.C. (April 16, 2014) — The Finalists have been determined. After eight grueling first round competitions pitting 28 chefs followed by two Semi Final battles featuring the remaining eight chefs, the best two chefs emerged and will now travel to the Kentucky Derby in Louisville, KY to battle in the Final on April 30, 2014.
SKUNA BAY SALMON KENTUCKY DERBY CELEBRITY CHEF JUDGES NAMED
Disney Signature Chef Andrew Sutton, Anaheim, CA and Tyler Wiard, Culinary Director of Elway’s, Denver, CO
Gold River, April, 21, 2014 ...“We are excited and gratified to have as judges, the participation of two great chefs who are well known as culinary leaders,” said Head Farmer Stewart Hawthorn of Skuna Bay Salmon. “We felt strongly that as our two finalists have put their heart and souls on the line in getting to the Finals, it was incumbent on us to secure the perfect judges, chefs who have been in competition before and who have the strongest reputations for excellence.
