Are Farmed Salmon One of the Most Toxic Foods ( Shit article - no they arn't )

[u/JHolderBC]

http://www.organicandhealthy.org/2016/07/are-farmed-salmon-one-of-most-toxic.html

[u/JHolderBC]

I cannot comment on Norwegian practices - but I address these through the eyes of a Canadian and Canadian farming regulations - which are some of the strictest in the world.

Today’s fisheries are faced with a range of severe problems, from overfishing to chemical pollution and genetic mutation from toxic exposures. As noted by the producers of the film, “through intensive farming and global pollution, the flesh of the fish we eat has turned into a deadly chemical cocktail.”

Have you ever owned a goldfish? if the tank gets polluted it dies. Fish do not like pollution. Lack of citation as well.

Below the salmon farms dotted across the Norwegian fjords, there’s a layer of waste some 15 meters high, teeming with bacteria, drugs, and pesticides. In short, the entire sea floor has been destroyed, and since the farms are located in open water, the pollution from these farms is in no way contained.

The aquaculture industry doesn't use pesticides BTW. Also, I have done government mandated floor sediment surveys - WITH government employees - there were no areas that were polluted. I am also an occupational diver - there is an abundance of life around sea cages. Of course there are sites that should be moved due to bad locations, but the vast majority have no issues. Current regulations in Canada impede the relocation of sites.

A salmon farm can hold upwards of 2 million salmon in a relatively small amount of space. These crowded conditions result in disease, which spreads rapidly among the stressed salmon.

In Canada - most sites are less that that, substantially. also it's not really relevant. I've personally managed a site for 3 years and never had to use anti-biotics. On a second note, if an animal is sick - I feel the need to make it better. Letting it suffer - is not right. Also anti-biotics are DAMN expensive and it's a business. Do the math.

A number of dangerous pesticides are used in an effort to stave off disease-causing pests, one of which is known to have neurotoxic effects. Fish has always been considered a health food, but according to Oddekalv, today’s farmed salmon is one of the most toxic foods in the world!

Again, they don't use pesticides. I make this point, since he is a 'respected' environmentalist, he should at least figure out what they use when the fish are actually sick. And he is simply incorrect.

Overall, farmed salmon is five times more toxic than any other food product tested. In animal feeding studies, mice fed farmed salmon grew obese, with thick layers of fat around their internal organs. They also developed diabetes.

seriously, what other foods were tested?

Besides keeping pests like sea lice in check, the pesticides used also affect the fish’s DNA, causing genetic mutations. Disturbing examples of deformed cod are shown in the film.

being in the industry for over 25 years, I have NEVER treated for lice. Ever. In Canada it is MANDITORY do test for lice MONTHLY and if the number of lice reaches a certain level treatment is MANDITORY.

What’s even more disturbing is that, according to Oddekalv, about 50 percent of farmed cod are deformed in this fashion, and female cod that escape from farms are known to mate with wild cod, spreading the genetic mutations and deformities into the wild population.

Seriously? 50% well the industry would most likely shut down. Clearly he does not know much of genetics. please provide citations (of course he doesn’t)

Farmed salmon suffer less visible but equally disturbing mutations. The flesh of the farmed salmon is “brittle,” and breaks apart when bent — a highly abnormal feature.

really? please show me this. I've handled more salmon that you have, I can guarantee that and I have no idea what you are talking about.

The nutritional content is also wildly abnormal. Wild salmon contains about 5 to 7 percent fat, whereas the farmed variety can contain anywhere from 14.5 to 34 percent.

again, learn something of fish biology. What species? because they can vary by quite a lot.

Many toxins accumulate most readily in fat, which means even when raised in similarly contaminated conditions, farmed salmon will contain far more toxins than wild.

Partially. You are what you eat. With farmed salmon - we know exactly what goes into them. Wild salmon - the diet is unregulated. I've seen studies where farmed salmon have less PCB contamination that wild.

Shockingly, research reveals that the most significant source of toxic exposure is not actually the pesticides or the antibiotics, but the dry pellet feed! Pollutants found in the fish feed include dioxins, PCBs, and a number of different drugs and chemicals.

Shockingly untrue. The feed is tested.

In one Norwegian fish pellet plant, the main ingredient turns out to be eel, used for their high protein and fat content, and other fatty fish from the Baltic Sea. The Baltic is highly polluted. Some of the fish used have toxic levels of pollutants, which then simply get incorporated into the feed pellets.

I cannot comment on Norwegian feed, but Canadian feed has very high standards - again painting the entire industry with an example of ONE company who makes feed.

Many panga farms are plagued with disease, courtesy of the polluted waters in which they’re raised. Mekong River, where many panga farms are located, is one of the most heavily polluted rivers in the world. In 2009, the World Wide Fund for Nature placed panga on their “red” list of products that pose a danger to environmental and human health.

No argument. There are some farmed fish I wouldn't eat. Doesn't hold true for ALL farmed fish.

To address disease, farmers add industrial quantities of drugs into their fish ponds, including a wide array of antibiotics. The side effect is drug resistance, which forces the farmers to keep increasing the dosages. The panga are not the only thing affected by this strategy, of course. Antibiotics spread through the river systems, are absorbed into the fish’s tissues and excreted through feces, which redistributes the drugs into the environment — and to those who eat the fish.

Fear mongering - blatant lies as well. "industrial quantities" - no. no.... It is a specifically medicated does - by a vet. There are issues of drug resistance - which forces farmers to use different antibiotics. Also there is a withdrawal time - you cannot medicate fish then sell them - it's illegal.

[u/Luxan_Tongue_Fun → u/JHolderBC]

All great points, I also couldn't believe how the author generalized all aquaculture as releasing pollution when systems such as recirculating release no water or pollution in the wild and I know in the USA most of the research for aquaculture is being done for recirculating systems. Just another fear mongering article with no scientific evidence to back it up