SALMON WARS

An investigation of the hidden costs of the salmon-farming industry.

Frantz is a former managing editor of the Los Angeles Times and chief investigator for the Senate Foreign Relations Committee, and Collins is a former private investigator. In this absorbing collaboration, the authors take us behind the scenes of the farm-raised salmon industry. According to their research, open-net salmon farms cause damage to the environment and threaten the wild salmon population. Farmed salmon frequently spend their lives in feces-ridden water, are more susceptible to parasites and viruses, and are often treated with dangerous pesticides. “When you eat salmon,” write the authors, “you are consuming all the pollutants and additives to which the fish has been exposed, which are stored in its fat.” In one study, researchers discovered that “farmed salmon contained up to ten times as much cancer-causing chemicals as their wild counterparts.” The authors also discuss the brutal treatment that salmon endure at hatcheries as well as the practice of killing predators that are attracted to the open nets of the salmon farms—sharks, seals, dolphins, and tuna. The authors convincingly demonstrate that the challenge for consumers is the lack of transparency and accountability in the industry. Akin to “Big Tobacco” or “Big Agribusiness,” they note, “Big Fish employs counter-science and public relations campaigns to undermine scientists and environmentalists who challenge its practices and products.” Although the outlook may sound bleak based on the extensive evidence that Frantz and Collins present, they also explore more sustainable commercial-scale salmon farming options, such as land farms and open-ocean farms. By exposing many of the unsavory elements of salmon farming, the authors hope to better educate consumers and encourage more responsible practices. In a closing call to action, the authors also warn that “the giants of the salmon-farming business will not abandon their profitable ways without pressure.”

A compelling investigation that will leave consumers reevaluating their food choices.