I want to check and see if our Whole Foods carries Sweetspring salmon. – Allison

Tank-Farmed Freshwater Coho Salmon

 

Yes, that’s right. There is a decent farmed salmon: coho salmon raised in freshwater tanks. It’s not as magnificent as ruby-red firm-fleshed wild Alaskan sockeye, but it is low in omega-6s, fairly high in omega-3s, gets a “Best Choice” rating and makes “The Super Green List” (good for the environment, low in PCB and mercury, high in omega-3s) from the Monterey Bay Aquarium Seafood Watch, and spends its life in carefully monitored freshwater tanks (as opposed to tightly packed coastal nets where metals and contaminants like dioxins and PCBs accumulate). The biggest health problems with farmed (Atlantic) salmon are the increased levels of omega-6 and the high levels of environmental and industrial contaminants. Freshwater farmed coho salmon avoids both. According to several sources, farmed coho salmon (and this is the regular, coastal farmed stuff, not the quality freshwater tank coho) sports a high omega-3:omega-6 ratio. A recent study (PDF) found that a 100 g portion of raw farmed coho contained 1.42 g omega-3 and just 0.46 g omega-6 (ratio of 3.1:1), compared to wild coho’s 0.9 g omega-3 and 0.06 g omega-6 (ratio of 14:1). The ratio is way different, sure, but does it really matter, given the paltry absolute amount of omega-6? If you look at the USDA database, 100 g of raw farmed coho has 1.3 g of omega-3 and 0.3 g omega-6. Any way you cut it, farmed coho is a good source of essential fatty acids, and I’d guess that freshwater tank-farmed coho salmon is just as good as conventionally farmed coho in that regard, if not better.

As of now, there are only a few freshwater, landlocked coho salmon farms in operation: Domsea Farms, out of Washington state, which sells coho to Whole Foods and other retailers under the SweetSpring label; and Swift Aquaculture, in British Columbia, which supplies upscale restaurants. More are surely coming, though, so be on the lookout for tank-raised (not coastal) coho in your area. You’ll still want to avoid other farmed salmon, of course.

Read more: http://www.marksdailyapple.com/farmed-seafood-safe-nutritious/#ixzz2TgbiYu4h

Healthy Farmed Fish and Seafood | Marks Daily Apple.