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Indeed, this is happening: https://www.statista.com/chart/2280/the-global-fish-farming-industry-is-booming/ https://www.statista.com/chart/2280/the-global-fish

by RajT88 4y ago

Indeed, this is happening: https://www.statista.com/chart/2280/the-global-fish-farming-industry-is-booming/ https://www.statista.com/chart/2280/the-global-fish-farming-... China's being smart about it too - they are farming fish which are ubiquitous and easy to farm (Carp and Tilapia): https://thechinaguys.com/aquaculture-in-china/ https://thechinaguys.com/aquaculture-in-china/ China could do a much better job at regulating their fishing industry though... In the West we eat Tilapia, but we probably should learn to eat Carp. Unfortunately as a family of fish, it gets a bad rap for a few reasons (Americans don't like bones, Carp has a low-class association, Carp can be "muddy" if not raised and prepared right).

jhickok 4y ago
We grew up eating carp out of the Mississippi river. Certainly not great, but easy enough to put in a smoker. In fact, it's a relatively common dish in certain communities along the river, and you can find smoked carp in gas stations and grocery stores in the region.
- deleted 4y ago
  [deleted]
- RajT88 4y ago
  Which region? I live a few hours from the Mississippi, but up north in northern IL, and it runs for quite a ways further north than even me. I will have to pick up some smoked carp if I make it to said area. I've never seen it for sale. The only time I've seen Carp for sale period is in Asian supermarkets.
  - jhickok 4y ago
    I am not super familiar with anything south of Dubuque, but Highway 35 between Prairie du Chien and ending with Lacrosse Wi is full of a number of small river towns that sell it (or at least did when I was growing up there). De Soto and Genoa are the two that had a lot of river catfish and carp, both smoked and sitting in grocer's fridge units.
  - jhickok 4y ago
    Here is a picture I found from a grocer in Prairie Du Chien: https://dynamic-media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-o/11/fd/29/84/choices-choices.jpg?w=1200&h=-1&s=1 https://dynamic-media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-o/11/f... Here is an article I found about it: https://www.outdoorlife.com/blogs/cast-iron-chef/ritters-fish-market-bringing-top-dollar-bottom-feeders-smoked-carp/ https://www.outdoorlife.com/blogs/cast-iron-chef/ritters-fis...
thatcat 4y ago
Carp are bottom feeders that accumulate toxins in polluted waters.
- RajT88 4y ago
  Sure. That's why they farm raise them in Asia. European carp, anyways. Asian species are a different story - some of them are filter feeders. Some other European species don't have bottom feeding mouth parts as well (Crucian, Prussian).
- kevin_thibedeau 4y ago
  So are catfish and there's a healthy market for them.
  - nradov 4y ago
    Most catfish are farm raised in reasonably clean water.
bcrosby95 4y ago
Lobsters were once a low class food. I wonder what it takes to change the perception.
- wincy 4y ago
  I don’t know but after going on vacation and eating some fresh lobster I think lobster is gross by itself. A nice Lobster Bisque prepared correctly is delicious but otherwise it’s just a giant muddy tasting sea bug. I’d prefer a Dungeness Crab over lobster any day.
- steveylang 4y ago
  You give it a fancy name and marketing makeover, that's what happened to the Patagonian toothfish...sorry, I meant Chilean sea bass.
- akiselev 4y ago
  Lobster was considered a low class food because it goes bad extremely fast once dead, i.e. within 24 hours even if properly refrigerated, and so it'd only be fed to people like prisoners who had no other choice. The popularity of lobster went up first when canning technology allowed boats to cook and package them up immediately after they were caught but they were still a cheap source of protein. It didn't become the delicacy it is today until after the great depression when the economics allowed fishermen to specialize in lobster fishing and keep them alive until they reached the customer. That set of circumstances is difficult to repeat for other species
juujian 4y ago
This is not the solution it seems. Too often, aquaculture uses wild-caught fish as feed. Great way to reduce waste, not a great way to protect the marine environment. At the moment, there is not a lot fish on the market that you can eat with a clean conscience. Edit: I was thinking saltwater fish, freshwater fish is a different story.
- RajT88 4y ago
  That's certainly true of Salmon, but not for Tilapia and Carp. Carp and Tilapia mostly feed on plant matter and insects - and so that's what the feed pellets are made of.
  - juujian 4y ago
    Good to know, appreciate it!
xkcd-sucks 4y ago
Seeing fish farms in China next to factories, trash heaps, and rail lines, maybe would inspire more confidence if the fish were less robust than tilapia and carp that can survive in almost anything

by RajT88 4y ago

jhickok 4y ago

We grew up eating carp out of the Mississippi river. Certainly not great, but easy enough to put in a smoker. In fact, it's a relatively common dish in certain communities along the river, and you can find smoked carp in gas stations and grocery stores in the region.

deleted 4y ago
[deleted]
RajT88 4y ago
Which region? I live a few hours from the Mississippi, but up north in northern IL, and it runs for quite a ways further north than even me. I will have to pick up some smoked carp if I make it to said area. I've never seen it for sale. The only time I've seen Carp for sale period is in Asian supermarkets.
- jhickok 4y ago
  I am not super familiar with anything south of Dubuque, but Highway 35 between Prairie du Chien and ending with Lacrosse Wi is full of a number of small river towns that sell it (or at least did when I was growing up there). De Soto and Genoa are the two that had a lot of river catfish and carp, both smoked and sitting in grocer's fridge units.
- jhickok 4y ago
  Here is a picture I found from a grocer in Prairie Du Chien: https://dynamic-media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-o/11/fd/29/84/choices-choices.jpg?w=1200&h=-1&s=1 https://dynamic-media-cdn.tripadvisor.com/media/photo-o/11/f... Here is an article I found about it: https://www.outdoorlife.com/blogs/cast-iron-chef/ritters-fish-market-bringing-top-dollar-bottom-feeders-smoked-carp/ https://www.outdoorlife.com/blogs/cast-iron-chef/ritters-fis...

thatcat 4y ago

Carp are bottom feeders that accumulate toxins in polluted waters.

RajT88 4y ago
Sure. That's why they farm raise them in Asia. European carp, anyways. Asian species are a different story - some of them are filter feeders. Some other European species don't have bottom feeding mouth parts as well (Crucian, Prussian).
kevin_thibedeau 4y ago
So are catfish and there's a healthy market for them.
- nradov 4y ago
  Most catfish are farm raised in reasonably clean water.

bcrosby95 4y ago

Lobsters were once a low class food. I wonder what it takes to change the perception.

wincy 4y ago
I don’t know but after going on vacation and eating some fresh lobster I think lobster is gross by itself. A nice Lobster Bisque prepared correctly is delicious but otherwise it’s just a giant muddy tasting sea bug. I’d prefer a Dungeness Crab over lobster any day.
steveylang 4y ago
You give it a fancy name and marketing makeover, that's what happened to the Patagonian toothfish...sorry, I meant Chilean sea bass.
akiselev 4y ago
Lobster was considered a low class food because it goes bad extremely fast once dead, i.e. within 24 hours even if properly refrigerated, and so it'd only be fed to people like prisoners who had no other choice. The popularity of lobster went up first when canning technology allowed boats to cook and package them up immediately after they were caught but they were still a cheap source of protein. It didn't become the delicacy it is today until after the great depression when the economics allowed fishermen to specialize in lobster fishing and keep them alive until they reached the customer. That set of circumstances is difficult to repeat for other species

juujian 4y ago

This is not the solution it seems. Too often, aquaculture uses wild-caught fish as feed. Great way to reduce waste, not a great way to protect the marine environment. At the moment, there is not a lot fish on the market that you can eat with a clean conscience. Edit: I was thinking saltwater fish, freshwater fish is a different story.

RajT88 4y ago
That's certainly true of Salmon, but not for Tilapia and Carp. Carp and Tilapia mostly feed on plant matter and insects - and so that's what the feed pellets are made of.
- juujian 4y ago
  Good to know, appreciate it!

xkcd-sucks 4y ago

Seeing fish farms in China next to factories, trash heaps, and rail lines, maybe would inspire more confidence if the fish were less robust than tilapia and carp that can survive in almost anything