September 12, 2007

 

Canada's fish farm supporter questions wisdom in drubbing fish farms

 

 

Canadians are giving away economic opportunities to America's salmon companies in Alaska if they continue to hold a negative image of fish farming and impose rigid environmental regulations on themselves, the region's fish farm supporters said.

 

Fish farming supporter Vivian Krause, a former corporate development manager for Nutreco North America, has been trying to overturn the anti-fish farming campaign in British Columbia.

 

Among her chief challenges is overcoming the PR clout of conservationists such as the David Suzuki Foundation (DSF), which has been arguing vehemently against fish farms

 

Believing the discussion on BC's salmon farming industry has been unfairly skewed towards conservationists, she has sought to right the argument.

 

It would not be unfair to say Krause has worked both sides of the line, having been a one-time DSF supporter and an employee of one of the largest aqua-feed producers in the country.

 

She is now concerned that putting a leash on BC's salmon industry is diverting business opportunities and revenue to Alaska, Canada's northerly neighbour.

 

One argument which hints heavily of chicanery stands out. DSF, one of the fiercest critics of fish farms in Canada, is largely funded by American foundations, some of whom also fund the Alaska Seafood Marketing Institute and other Alaska salmon promoters.

 

The less consumers eat farmed salmon, the more they would turn to wild salmon, most of which comes from Alaska. That moots a lot of research that DSF has done.

 

In fact, she argues, Alaskan salmon is not authentically wild either, given the fact that the state actually releases 1.5 billion salmonids a year from hatcheries into the ocean and simply harvests it when it is time. 

 

Critics have called Alaska's hatchery-dependent fisheries neither wild nor self-sustaining.

 

Encouraging consumers to avoid farmed salmon and opt for Alaska salmon supports Alaska's salmon-ranching programme, which is far more damaging to biodiversity than salmon farming.

 

Other claims such as the questionable safety of eating farmed salmon and the amount of environmental damage they caused have not been proven by scientific evidence, Krause said.

 

However, Krause concedes that salmon farming is not perfect, but it is improving.

 

The fact that is would provide jobs and revenue to impoverished coastal communities should prompt a rethink, she added.