4 ms·

Well this is the main reason I prefer to buy farm raised fish. It might not do much to help the eco system, or my health, but I feel at least the fish I am eati

Well this is the main reason I prefer to buy farm raised fish. It might not do much to help the eco system, or my health, but I feel at least the fish I am eating was raised with the purpose of being eaten. Further, I find it rather gross that fishermen essentially "throw away" everything they don't want.

cwal37 13y ago
It does help. In terms of output farmed fish are far and away the most efficient of livestock. It's been a few years, but if I recall correctly farmed tilapia produce 1kg per 1.1kg of feed. That's incredible compared to beef or even chicken. Also, encouraging well run fish farming operations takes pressure off of the wild stocks. In terms of eating meat, you're doing it right.
- rprospero 13y ago
  A few years ago, I was at the local natural food market and I overheard the manager explaining to a customer that the store did not and would not ever carry farm raised fish. He explained how farmed fish lived in horrible conditions and that the only moral and sustainable option is to only buy free range fish which were caught from the ocean, where fish were part of their proper ecosystem. From an intellectual, sustainability standpoint, I suspect that you are right and that farmed fish is the way to go. However, this is why I've completely factored guilt and morality out of my environmental decisions - No matter what I do, one of the employees at the natural food store will tell me that I'm killing the planet.
scott_karana 13y ago
Sadly, that's not free of problems either. At least with open-net farming, the disease and sea lice can cause decreases in wild populations as well. Some of the mortality rates are really depressing. http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/business/story.html?id=6d3af277-d143-4115-adf9-25a2825e342a http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/business/story.html?...

cwal37 13y ago

It does help. In terms of output farmed fish are far and away the most efficient of livestock. It's been a few years, but if I recall correctly farmed tilapia produce 1kg per 1.1kg of feed. That's incredible compared to beef or even chicken. Also, encouraging well run fish farming operations takes pressure off of the wild stocks. In terms of eating meat, you're doing it right.

rprospero 13y ago
A few years ago, I was at the local natural food market and I overheard the manager explaining to a customer that the store did not and would not ever carry farm raised fish. He explained how farmed fish lived in horrible conditions and that the only moral and sustainable option is to only buy free range fish which were caught from the ocean, where fish were part of their proper ecosystem. From an intellectual, sustainability standpoint, I suspect that you are right and that farmed fish is the way to go. However, this is why I've completely factored guilt and morality out of my environmental decisions - No matter what I do, one of the employees at the natural food store will tell me that I'm killing the planet.

scott_karana 13y ago

Sadly, that's not free of problems either. At least with open-net farming, the disease and sea lice can cause decreases in wild populations as well. Some of the mortality rates are really depressing. http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/business/story.html?id=6d3af277-d143-4115-adf9-25a2825e342a http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/business/story.html?...