Before you take the bait…
Learn what’s going on beneath the surface.
Many people believe ocean-farmed salmon is healthy, sustainable, and good for the planet. The reality? 99% of Atlantic salmon served in restaurants and sold in grocery stores is farmed in sea cages, and it’s harming our oceans and the future of wild salmon.
PROBLEM 1
It’s driving wild Atlantic salmon to extinction.
Ocean salmon farming is driving the collapse of wild Atlantic salmon, which have declined 70% since the 1970s. Overcrowded cages can break, allowing farmed salmon to escape, interbreed with wild populations, and weaken the species’ ability to survive.
PROBLEM 2
It pollutes oceans and your plate.
99% of Atlantic salmon on the market is farmed. It is less clean, less transparent, and less nutritious than you may think.
PROBLEM 3
It’s raised in harmful
sea cages.
These cramped cages, with water clouded by chemicals and fecal matter, are inhumane. Between 2012 and 2022, approximately 865 million ocean-farmed salmon died prematurely.
PROBLEM 4
It creates food
insecurity.
Feeding one farmed salmon requires disproportionately more wild fish that could be feeding vulnerable people in low-income countries.
2x
Ocean-farmed salmon has more saturated fat as wild salmon.
865M
Ocean-farmed salmon died prematurely between 2012 and 2022.
This photo, taken inside a sea cage, shows an ocean-farmed salmon whose flesh has been ravaged by the sea lice
and diseases that proliferate in ocean farms.
7 Species
of wild salmon
around the world
Salmon farmed in sea cages is a selectively-bred commercial product called Atlantic salmon that is NOT the same as wild Atlantic salmon, which are endangered in the U.S. and critically threatened globally.
99%
Of Atlantic salmon served in restaurants and grocery stores is farmed.
Did you know?
Just a few decades ago, salmon was a seasonal protein. The industry manufactured today’s constant demand and meets it with ocean farms that harm wild populations and pollute oceans. But there’s still time to change course before wild Atlantic salmon are driven to extinction.
Don't be fooled by
misleading marketing.
‘‘Responsibly-raised’’
can mean very different things from one producer to the next. Look past the label and ask how the fish was raised.
“Ocean-raised”
doesn’t mean it’s healthy, sustainable or good for the environment.
“Organic”
The Department of Agriculture (USDA) does not set standards for organic salmon farming.
Be wary of menu descriptions of farmed salmon that lean on the reputation of pristine places like Chile or Iceland.
If it’s ocean-farmed — anywhere — it’s a problem. A good rule of thumb if you’re confused by the labels:
When in doubt, leave it out.
