California Fish Farms

January 24, 2014

Question: I have questions and concerns about fish farms and the fish they produce. Do fish farms pose any major threats to the environment? Are high disease rates in farmed fish due to improper fish management? Is it true that wild fish are healthier to consume than farmed fish? How much do fish farms contribute economically to society and do they provide many jobs? Thanks for any insight. (Julie B.)

Answer: Commercial fish farms are required to have CDFW permits, and if properly sited and operated, they should have no negative impact on the environment. If the farmed fish are allowed to escape and impact wild fish or other aquatic organisms though, that might be another story and adverse environmental impacts may occur.

One potential problem might be if water discharge from the farm is not properly treated, then there could be impacts to water quality of adjacent receiving stream systems. Fish disease issues can be nearly eliminated at the farms if properly managed.

As far as whether farmed fish or wild fish are better for your health, there is no evidence that farmed fish are less healthy to consume than wild fish. However, wild fish quality is probably better in most cases.

While fish farming can certainly create jobs and provide more employment opportunities, harvesting wild fish also creates jobs. It's hard to say whether one method creates more jobs than the other.

Past 2 years fishing the lower Sac for salmon I have found only one difference between the 2. Wild salmon have a lot more fight. Meat is the same. Both are lean fish.