The Martlet

Pressure on any industry to perform well is ultimately a good thing. As any of the thousands of workers in B.C.’s aquaculture sector will proudly tell you, our industry has come a long way in a short time. They’ll also tell you our sustainability practices are second-to-none.

I’d like to point out that pressures on wild salmon in B.C. — and along the entire coast of North America — include development, logging, mining, changing ocean temperatures, food supply and fishing. 

The theory that sea lice from salmon farms will wipe out wild Pink salmon has been proven false, as wild Pink numbers this year in areas of salmon farms are above average.

Now, activists say high Pink numbers are because salmon farmers are fallowing [temporarily removing salmon from the sea pens] during outmigration periods, but salmon farmers have continued the same management practices as in the past. 

The highest return of wild Pink salmon in recorded history occurred in 2000 — more than a decade after the start of salmon farming in B.C.

Regarding sea lice, it’s important to note they are natural parasites of both farmed and wild salmon. SLICE, a therapeutant used to treat sea lice on farmed salmon, has been formally approved by Health Canada and poses no known health risk for humans. SLICE has very little toxic effect on the marine environment. 

The possibility of disease outbreaks on farmed salmon in B.C. is low, as Canadian-farmed salmon stocks are healthy. Stringent controls are in place to ensure there are no cases of infectious salmon anaemia (ISA) virus on the West Coast. On the East Coast, where ISA is an endemic disease — that is, part of the marine ecosystem — there have been no ISA outbreaks for nearly three years. ISA vaccines have been developed by Canadian health experts, and all Canadian farmed salmon stocks are monitored regularly for the disease. Early detection is key to avoiding outbreaks.

I’d also like to comment that with constant improvements in feed, Canadian salmon farmers only require an average of 1.5 kilograms of feed to grow one kilogram of salmon.

The amount of wild fish meal and oil used in feed is being reduced, and substituted by plant-based proteins, with no significant reduction in heart-healthy omega-3 fatty acids in the salmon.

Canadian salmon farmers are leading the way in feed technologies. Most use approximately 30 per cent fish meal and oil in each kilogram of feed — that means only 0.3 kilograms of wild fish are needed to grow one kilogram of farmed salmon.

Looking at the big picture, growing fish is more efficient than raising animals on land.

The allegation that sea lice from B.C. salmon farms are killing Fraser River sockeye is far-fetched. Researchers now understand that Pacific salmon are resistant to damage from sea lice except in their infancy, when first leaving their natal rivers.

In the case of Fraser River Sockeye, the closest salmon farm is over 110 kilometers away from the Fraser River’s mouth, so there is little opportunity for Fraser River salmon fry to come in contact with farmed salmon during critical early life stages.

Paul Sprout, the Pacific region director general of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, has clearly stated: “Sea lice from fish farms are not the explanation for this year’s extremely poor marine survival of Fraser River sockeye.”

In terms of government jurisdiction of salmon farms in B.C., salmon farmers will continue to abide transparently by a strict set of regulations — whether the industry is managed provincially or federally.

The United Nations says the number of hungry people in the world has surpassed one billion for the first time in 40 years. Let’s focus on the real problem: providing safe, healthy, affordable food to a growing global population.

Ruth Salmon is the Canadian Aquaculture Industry Alliance Executive Director