The line on fish

A two-part article discussing the differences in the way fish are raised and caught and the discussions surrounding both fresh water and deep-sea fish.

I grew up near the White River in the middle of Vermont, just upstream from a salmon fish hatchery that I never paid much attention to, quite frankly. Late in my senior year, one of my friends started working there on weekends and I found out that under the dozen or so brown domes that you could see from the road, Atlantic salmon were raised and released into local rivers and lakes as yearlings, courtesy of Vermont’s Fish and Game Department. When I started buying and cooking fish and eating it more in restaurants, the knowledge of farmed versus freely caught fish was a fun fact, albeit a very surface one in my repertoire. But, lately, the pros and cons of farming, articles about fish to buy and ones to avoid and the term “sustainable fish” have been coming up more and more in my reading and research and it piqued my interest. Needless to say, when you start digging, there’s enough about fish farming and the sustainability of the sea to fill many volumes.


What’s a fish farm?

For starters, let’s tackle the “what” of fish farming. There are two main types of farming, extensive and intensive aquaculture that can take on many different forms from there.

Extensive—or pond—aquaculture is based on local photosynthetic production wherein fish grow their own food, so to speak. This method is as close a force to nature as a farm gets in a controlled environment, and is what the farmers at the Star Prairie Trout practice (more on that below). Though the ponds that the fish are grown in are sometimes fertilized to juice up the processes, the fish still nibble and graze on phytoplankton and other goodies until they are harvested — just like in the wild.

In the intensive method, farmed fish are fed with an external food supply and the production can be increased as long as you have enough oxygen, fresh water and food as part of the equation. Since there are all kinds of little bugaboos that can happen in this method, including water pollution and viruses, it’s far more expensive and tightly monitored than other methods of farming. Net fishing, a type of intensive farming, typically takes place nearer to shores where they make use of flowing water, is coming under fire for the potential damaging effects it can have on the environment. Though proponents claim that this type of in-shore fishing has become cleaner over the years, it still poses an issue for many environmentalists.

Plus, now farms are being put into deep waters in the open ocean. Both methods open up a can of worms, so to speak. Since intensive aquaculture is by its very nature less controllable, it becomes an area of concern for sustainable-oriented foodies, environmentalists and others concerned with where and how their food is raised. There are a few issues that come up frequently. There can be an accidental release of farmed fish, allowing them to mix with wild stock. This mix up of the gene pool could pose serious issues for certain species that already face threats, like wild salmon, since they rely on old, built-in knowledge to survive. Another issue is the pollution from fish farms that can be released into the environment from the effluent that the farms create. Last, but not least, it may not be as sustainable a model as some claim, since some carnivorous fin fish, like salmon, are often fed wild-caught fish, thus further depleting the natural resources.

When it comes to the pros and cons, farming can quickly becomes a slippery slope, and since it brings in 30 percent of the world’s supply of fish, it’s a discussion that’s unlikely to go away anytime soon.


Good farmers practice what they preach

A few of the things at stake in the discussion of fish farming are the real and the yet-to-be-considered environmental issues, the depletion of wild stocks and the world’s growing population that’s hungry for proteins. However, just like anything else, there’s a good and a bad way to go about the practice of farming for fish, and plenty of people doing it both ways.

One of the farmers standing on the side of sustainable, reasonable farming practices is Mac Graham and his wife, Marcy, of Star Prairie Trout Farm. It’s a family farm where trout and salmon are raised in sort of the hydro-equivalent of free-range, since no additives or medications are added to the water, the fish circle lazily in crisp, 49 degree spring-fed water and the Grahams stay on the lighter side of stocking. Star Prairie supplies several Twin Cities’ restaurants and markets, including Restaurant Alma, the Seward Co-op and Lucia’s and it doesn’t get much fresher. “We’re cutting fish today that will go into the cities tomorrow,” says Nate Wendt, the farm manager. “Chefs definitely like that it’s fresh and that it’s got a firm texture and tastes great.”

The fact that the Grahams are practicing sustainable aquaculture isn’t lost on those purchasing their fish, either. “It’s a great product and it’s so local,” says Heidi Olstad, the Seward’s meat and dairy buyer. “I would avoid other fish that’s farmed, but Star Prairie raises fish in a way that’s both economically viable and sustainable.”

Check back next month for part two of The Line on Fish, when we delve into the depths of the issues affecting deep-sea fishing and try to get to the bottom of fish that’s good for you and fish that’s not.