PAA ad campaign to counter misinformation about BC salmon farming. April 30, 2010
Today, Positive Aquaculture Awareness (PAA) begins its advertising campaign in numerous Canwest and Black Press Vancouver Island newspapers to counter the recent misinformation from activist Alexandra Morton.
The Get Out Migration (also referred to as “Salmon Are Sacred) protest, organized by Alexandra Morton and the American protest group Pure Salmon, is now at its half way mark.
“This organized protest has produced many erroneous claims about the aquaculture business in British Columbia,” says Cory Percevault, president of PAA. “Unfortunately, some people will actually start to believe this nonsense if they aren’t provided the real story.”
Percevault says this misinformation includes the nationality of BC aquaculture workers, the health and quality of BC farm-raised salmon and the risk of aquaculture to wild salmon. “The narrow minded focus on our business by a few vocal activists is not only misguided, it’s an insult to the 6000 men and woman working hard growing a healthy, nutritious product”, says Percevault. “These people should really be ashamed of their actions.”
PAA intends to place ads in all Vancouver Island papers for the next few weeks and are focused on correcting false claims being made by Alexandra Morton.
“She’s cried wolf so many times, it’s hard to keep track. These ads will highlight her Top Ten list of misinformation”.
“When they’re own research doesn’t even back up their claims, it’s a wonder anyone listens to them,” Percevault continues, “but some impressionable people do believe the rhetoric, so we salmon farmers and suppliers to the industry need to speak up loud…and often.”
Additional ads are also being created. One will highlight ocean explorer Jacques Cousteau’s comment about how ocean farming makes practical sense, reading, "We must plant the sea and herd its animals using the sea as farmers instead of hunters."
Today’s advertisement reads;
She said pink salmon will go extinct. THEY DIDN’T.
She said salmon farms will introduce exotic diseases. THEY HAVEN”T.
She says BC salmon farmers are Norwegian. THEY’RE NOT.
Does she ever get it right?
Yes, when she said, “I don’t have a great set of credentials”
