Food Safety
Ocean-farmed salmon are grown under carefully controlled conditions, with constant monitoring of growing conditions and production inputs. Every fish that’s raised can be traced from the hatchery to the store where it is bought.
Food inspection agencies in the United States (the Food and Drug Administration - FDA), Canada (the Canadian Food Inspection Agency - CFIA) and Chile (Servicio Nacional de Pesca - Sernapesca) continuously monitor salmon quality during the production and processing steps. Learn more »
In addition to complying with government regulations, the ocean-farmed salmon industry, working in conjunction with retailers, has its own stringent production and monitoring standards.
Together, this combination of industry and regulatory efforts ensures the highest quality, freshest, safest food reaches consumers.
Ocean-farmed Salmon and Food Safety:
No Mercury Concerns
Mercury has been in the news a lot lately, and some authorities recommend reduced consumption of some fish to limit mercury intake. Fortunately, these concerns do not apply to ocean-farmed or wild salmon.
In fact, in ongoing testing conducted by the FDA, salmon has been consistently rated as among the fish with the lowest mercury levels.
PCBs
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), as all other persistent organic contaminants, are a concern in many foods. Continuous testing by Salmon of the Americas and others indicates that PCB limits in ocean-farmed salmon are almost equal to those found in wild salmon, and well below Food and Drug Administration (FDA) limits (about 1/200). Numerous independent research reports – including those by the Harvard School of Public Health and the National Academy of Sciences – have concluded that the PCB levels in ocean-farmed salmon are not a cause for concern.
Antibiotics
Antibiotics are administered to ocean-farmed salmon in limited amounts and are used solely for medical purposes, not to increase the growth rates of the fish. Licensed veterinarians supervise the administering of the prescription antibiotics, and farmers adhere to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration regulations through monitoring and regulating antibiotic withdrawal times so that levels do not exceed FDA tolerances.
No Hormones
No hormones are used in the production of ocean-farmed salmon.
To learn more about the nutritional values of ocean-farmed salmon, see Ocean-farmed Salmon: The Healthy Choice »
Thai Salmon with Ginger
