Hatchery-bred Salmon augments wild stock population
The collapse of the Chinook Salmon (a.k.a.: King or Spring) run this year in California's Sacramento River has led to a declaration of failure in West Coast salmon fishery. Only 60,000 chinooks are expected to return to the river to spawn and the resulting next generation will be a depleted population that will return from the oceans 4 to 6 years from now. Remedial measures being done involve seeding hatchery-bred Chinook Smolts (juveniles) straight into the ocean waters where they will essentially live in a wild environment. This fish culture practice is called "sea ranching".
Right here in the Greater Vancouver Region, British Columbia, there are government funded efforts to support a sustainable salmon population. For instance, the Capilano River Hatchery produces chinook and coho frys from returning wild stocks.
It usually takes a full year from the time the eggs are hatched to the time the new fish reach the smolt stage (approximately six inches body length) before they are released into the Capilano River. The fish swim downstream into the Burrard Inlet that leads them to the Straight of Georgia and eventually into the deep, wild and pristine waters of the west pacific ocean where they will feed on their natural foods. Other predatory fishes will reduce the hatchery-bred population and the survivors will return to their river of birth in the next 3 to 5 years. The next offsprings will once again be cultivated with closely supervised feeds and feeding programs.
Golden Trout
The visit to Pike's Place Market in Seattle, WA yielded another pleasant surprise for me. Behold! there is a cousin of the drab colored rainbow trout that wears an eye catching golden red skin and it is called the, golden rainbow trout. By the way, there is also another family member wearing a brown skin color.
According to a report on the Pennsylvania Fishes, the golden rainbow trout (Onchorynchus mykiss) was developed from a single female trout with a genetic mutation that gave her mixed golden and normal rainbow trout coloration. She was found in the West Virginia hatchery system in 1954. Through selective breeding with regular rainbow trout, an all-gold, golden rainbow trout was developed. In 1963 this strain was popularized as the "West Virginia Centennial Golden Trout". A similar strain, the California Golden Trout (Onchorynchus aguabonita) is found in some streams of Northern California.
A variety of colors in the display case of fishes always come out appealing to customers. The orange to crimson red body meat color of the salmon is always a sight to behold. The pure white and smooth textured Chilean Sea Bass fillet stands out when it is sandwiched between the salmon and the deep red steak cuts of premium Ahi tuna.
Now, how good does the golden trout taste? It is probably of the same flavor as the rainbow trout. Given its coloration, the whole fish would be a diner's delight when steamed and garnished later with fresh ginger and green onion strings served with a dip of honey soy sauce.
How to catch a fish
As Vancouver, BC has Granville Island, and San Francisco, CA has its Fisherman's Wharf, Seattle, WA has the distinctive Pike's Place Market, a tourist-must-see. Locally sourced and artisan crafted items provide entertainment as well as prompt the visitor to pull out some bills and make a purchase that carry happy memories of the place.
Being a fishmonger, I spent more time observing the three fish shops: Pike's Place Fish Co., Pure Foods and City Fish. Each had a distinctive way of attracting viewers and buyers. The first store, though, has already etched a niche in the tourist calendar as it is famous for its fishmongering style: "Throwing the fish". So here's a video clip of "How to catch a fish."
This is Wild Catch salmon!
What is a wild catch salmon? In common language, it connotes a salmon caught from the wild waters, marine or river system. It triggers an image of salmon born in their natural spawning grounds and spending their growing years in the clean and pristine waters of the north pacific ocean.
How wild is the salmon really?
Yesterday, my co-worker said while filleting several fresh and wild Alaskan salmon, "Hey Djoma, look at this, there are punched holes in the fins of the salmon!" I responded, "Oh, those are hatchery tags. That means that the salmon was hatched and raise for a year before being released to the wild. That culture process is referred to as sea ranching." What really caught my attention was the reaction of another co-worker who heard my response. "That is scary. The salmon then is not really wild!"
When I made a video documentary about the Capilano Coho Salmon, I learned that the government sponsored hatchery in the Capilano River, North Vancouver, BC, would tag 25% of the salmon fingerlings they produced and released to the wild. They also would insert a wire marker into the snout of the fish. These procedures are for purposes of tracking the fish. Since then, every now and then I would receive a whole salmon (usually a Chinook) with its snout cut off. It must be a hatchery produced "wild salmon". The licensed fishers report the tagged salmon to the appropriate government agency.
Let me get back to the "That is scary," statement of my co-worker. The implication is that, any salmon that is hatchery produced is basically a farmed salmon. A manager from a fish distribution company who had viewed my video on the Capilano Salmon asked me, "Since the salmon was hatched and nursed in a close system and fed with formulated feeds, would that make them farmed salmon?" I said, "Yes and No. Yes, since they got started off with formulated feeds. No because they matured in the wild open seas."
Being relatively new in Canada, there is still much for me to learn about the fishery system in the northwest pacific rim. During a recent visit in Tofino, BC, my host narrated that the Alaska fishery systems is augmenting ocean salmon stocks with hatchery produced fingerlings. The growing appetite for salmon is becoming more difficult to supply with naturally spawned salmon. Yesterday's tagged salmon just confirmed that for me. I am aware that there are a number of interventions, government sponsored, to improve the wild salmon stocks. The Alaska Snow Pass Coho Salmon would be one, another is the Capilano River Hatchery (under the Salmonid Enhancement Program) and still another would be the Washington Salmon Hatchery System.
So is that really a wild catch salmon? It was caught from the wild, yes. Is it naturally wild? No, if it was hatchery produced.
The preference for wild salmon over farmed salmon has several issues. One of the arguments is that farmed salmon puts a pressure on wild fish feed stocks that are converted into fish feeds. Along this argument, I wonder what kind of pressure on the fish feed stocks is made by the release of 250,000,000 hatchery-produced salmon fingerlings into the northwest pacific ocean?
So when I see a banner head that says, "Go wild salmon...", and pay a premium price for the "wild" tag, I'll react, "....ho-hum..."
BC Sardines Festival
The annual BC Sardines Festival will be held on Saturday, Sep 1 2007 at the Steveston Harbour Authority Fisherman's Park (in front of the Gulf of Georgia Cannery National Historic Site) from 11am to 4pm. 
Come early and bring your fish coolers or styro boxes to pack the fresh sardines that will be available for sale in boats parked at the Fisherman's Wharf.
On several occassions, my store carried fresh BC sardines which are large (6-8 inches body length) by comparison to those that are canned. Customers would ask how to best cook it. I would get grimaced facial expressions as I recommend that, "season it generously with salt and pepper, set the grill on high heat, then lay the sardines whole and ungutted. Prepare a dip of white vinegar with crushed garlic, add a few threads of bird's eye chili, temper with drops of fish sauce. Have lots of steamed jasmine rice ready." How about the bones? The meat would peel off easily when the fish is cooked.
Beas Kitchen has a wonderful suggestion on how to Grill Sardines and serve with marinated fennel and radish salad.
Unfortunately many stores are caught in the customers' logic: "It is such a cheap fish (just over a $ per pound), so it must not be good." And if someone buys them, the customer would request that the sardines be gutted and washed. The labor cost involved in the service may be more than the cost of the fish, so stores do not derive any value added from selling sardines.
Pictures and video of the sardines festival will be available a week after the event.
Images from the 2007 Boston Seafood Exhibit
Anyone who had a chance to drop by the recently concluded 2007 Boston Seafood Exhibit (March 11-13, 2007) would leave the place running to the nearest gourmet seafood restaurant asking to dine on the best seafood dish that can be offered.
There was an explosion of colors as fishes were displayed in whole forms. Surprisingly, Tilapia has emerged as a major product with many booths presenting it in enticing retail packs.
Enhancing the Seafood Experience
Welcome to this online meeting place of the community of advocates for sustainable, nutritious, gourmet seafood dining. View from this site different ways to source, prepare and cook fish as you nourish yourself, your family, or your close friends to an indoor or outdoor seafood treat.
