This commentary was authored by Rachel Hopkins, Communications Consultant, Pure Salmon Campaign and Urvashi Rangan, PhD, Senior Scientist and Policy Analyst, Consumers Union.
Close to 20 years ago, the U.S. defined what organic means in the U.S. Organic Food Production Act of 1990, expressly written for food grown in the ground and animals raised on land.
But as the organic movement has evolved into the organic industry, other products have started to carry erroneous “organic” claims. Enter the current debate raging in the U.S. regarding the development of “organic” standards for fish. The U.S. Department of Agriculture decided a couple years ago that wild fish are not eligible for the organic label because their living conditions are impossible to monitor and control.
Is Organic the Answer for Seafood?
By Rachel Hopkins, Communications Consultant, Pure Salmon Campaign; Urvashi Rangan, PhD, Senior Scientist and Policy Analyst, Consumers Union.
Close to 20 years ago, the U.S. defined what organic means in the U.S. Organic Food Production Act of 1990, expressly written for food grown in the ground and animals raised on land. But as the organic movement has evolved into the organic industry, other products have started to carry erroneous “organic” claims. Enter the current debate raging in the U.S. regarding the development of “organic” standards for fish.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture decided a couple years ago that wild fish – because their living conditions are impossible to monitor and control – are not eligible for the organic label.
So, this leaves farmed fish but it has taken the USDA some time to figure out what to do with farmed fish – and to realize that fish are not just cows swimming in water and that organic standards for these animals cannot be superimposed onto fish. And, while we’ve been trying to figure out our own organic standards for farmed fish, the USDA has decided to allow foreign fish farmers to label their products as “organic” in the U.S. marketplace – hence the “organic” farmed salmon you see in your grocery store today.
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Confused? Here’s what a seafood-loving consumer needs to know…
First, stop paying more for “organic” farmed fish. It’s unlikely the “organic” farmed salmon you may see at your fish counter or restaurant menu bears any resemblance to organic food as you know it. So-called “organic” farmed salmon from Scotland, for example, could have been treated with chemicals and may contain higher levels of PCBs (contaminants) than its conventional counterpart.
Second, understand that not all farmed fish are created equal. Farmed fish vary tremendously in terms of what they eat and how they are raised. And with these differences, environmental impacts like pollution and impact of wild fish and other marine creatures can vary just as drastically. All of these impacts are central to defining what is, and perhaps more importantly, what is not organic.
Third, remember a pretty simple rule of thumb. If a fish is a vegetarian and was farmed in a confined farming system (picture a pond or tank), like catfish or tilapia, then it can probably be adapted to organic production. If a fish eats other fish as a large part of its diet or was farmed in an open system (picture a big net full of fish anchored in the ocean) like farmed salmon, it should never be organic no matter how you fillet it.
The big debate between many organic and conservation groups and the fish farming industry is whether or not there should be a line drawn in the sand – where some farmed fish should be considered for the organic labels and others should not.
We’re for a line in the sand. And, here’s why.
Not all Farmed Fish are Created Equal
A coalition of more than 40 organic farmers, consumer advocates, animal welfare, conservation groups and even celebrity chefs have joined forces to prevent aquaculture industry interests from watering down our nation’s organic standards. These organizations including the Center for Food Safety, the Humane Society of the United States, Greenpeace USA, Sierra Club Canada, Trout Unlimited, Food and Water Watch, Pure Salmon Campaign and Consumers Union have called on the USDA to ensure that the organic label is not diluted to accommodate carnivorous fish and open net cages. If you want to delve deeper, go to: http://www.puresalmon.org/pdfs/nosb-letter.pdf
So what is good and bad when it comes to farmed seafood? Three of the top four seafoods consumed in the U.S. — shrimp, salmon and catfish — come largely from fish farms. Catfish is mostly farmed in closed systems where there is at least some control over the inputs and outputs of the farm. Catfish are also vegetarian fish and because they do not rely on other fish as their food, they’re considered “net producers” of protein. These are the farmed fish that help take the burden off dwindling wild fish populations and these are the farmed fish that almost everyone agrees can and should be considered for the organic label.
Then, there is farmed salmon. About 99.9 percent of farmed salmon is farmed in production systems known as open net cages. Imagine a series of huge nets anchored along the coast or in the open ocean and you get the picture. Most of these farms are found in pristine locations such as the islands of British Columbia, the fjords of Norway and Chile, and the coasts of Scotland. We believe these farming systems are inherently incompatible with organic principles.
There is a laundry list of reasons why so many organizations and individuals feel strongly about keeping farmed fish like salmon out of the organic fold. A recent Consumers Union poll revealed that nine of out of ten consumers agree that “organic” fish should be produced without environmental pollution and be free of or low in contaminants like mercury and PCBs. Three-quarters of consumers polled also expressed concern with ocean pollution caused by fish farms advertised as organic.
Farming the “Tigers of the Sea”
Carnivorous fish like salmon and cod require other fish as food. A farmed salmon diet relies heavily on wild fish, which is not and will never be certified organic (remember, you are what you eat). They also place pressure on wild fish for feed. It currently takes three pounds of wild fish to produce one pound of farmed salmon, not exactly an ecologically efficient system. And, this “fish chow” exposes farmed salmon to a variety of toxins such as PCBs and dioxins.Pollution
A salmon farm of 200,000 fish releases an amount of fecal matter roughly equivalent to the nutrient waste in the raw sewage from 65,000 people. Sewage and other wastes from salmon farming causes far-reaching environmental harm by contaminating the sea floor and triggering toxic algal blooms. Although recycling of wastes is a tenant of organic farming, there is no way for an open net cage system to recycle most of its wastes.
Escapes
Fish farming companies have reported the escape of over 10 million farmed salmon and trout in the past five years. Mass escapes of farmed salmon can result in interbreeding and competition with wild salmon and spread disease to and from wild fish While the current draft, organic standards for aquaculture require that: “adequate measures be taken to prevent escapes of cultivated animals and plants from the aquaculture facility”, the very design of open net cages makes it impossible to eliminate escapes. For example, the Norwegian government has a “no escapees” plan for its salmon farming industry, yet last year 1.2 million farmed salmon escaped.
Spread of disease to wild fish
Farming salmon at high stocking densities in open net cages creates a breeding ground for bacterial and viral diseases as well as parasites, which can readily transfer to and from wild fish by tidal flow and escapes. An October 2006 study published in the National Academy of Sciences showed sea lice infections on salmon farms in British Columbia can kill up to 95 percent of young wild salmon as they migrate out to sea past salmon farms. The Norwegian Directorate for Nature Management has estimated that in some areas, 90 percent of the outgoing juvenile, wild salmon run carries lethal lice levels.
Marine mammal deaths
The open net cage system attracts predators such as sea lions and seals. Predation not only results in stress and possible injury or loss of farmed fish, but marine mammal predators can become entangled and drown in the nets. One British Columbian salmon farm operating in a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve recently reported 110 sea lion deaths from drowning in its nets in 2007. Of these, 51 deaths occurred in one single incident.
Should everything be organic?
Some fish farmers have argued that organic standards for farmed fish should allow fish to eat non-organic, wild fish for feed – so that carnivorous fish like farmed salmon can be considered for an organic label. But, perhaps this is the point. Should there not be some items that are simply ineligible for an organic label?
If we allow farmed salmon into the organic fold then the door is open to other carnivorous fish farmed in open net cages like cod, haddock and tuna. The National Organic Standards Board (NOSB) should not succumb to the pressures of big business and should focus on maintaining the integrity of the organic label. If the USDA allows for open net systems, then it will be selling the organic label down the river.
There is no doubt that the salmon aquaculture industry is powerful. We want to protect the integrity of organic food and ensure the safety, welfare and sustainability of production. As a first step, we urge every consumer to let the NOSB know how you feel about organic farmed fish. Send a letter or draft an email– let your voice be heard. Remember, it may be their bottom line, but it’s your food and our environment.
