Abel & Cole has stopped sourcing sea-farmed salmon in the face of increasing controversy around the fish production system.
The veg box delivery company is switching to land-based, responsibly-farmed salmon from the end of the month.
Abel & Cole said it made the decision in light of issues surrounding sea-farmed salmon, including the threat to biodiversity and wild stocks, the mass mortality often linked to sea lice, pests and disease, and overall environmental impact of fish faeces and medications.
The company added it was moving to Icelandic, land-based, responsibly farmed salmon as a sign of its commitment to “putting the environment, biodiversity and great taste at the heart of what we do”.
Powered by 100% renewable energy, the Icelandic farm is said to have “exceptional water quality” as fresh water and uncontaminated Atlantic seawater is filtered through 300m of porous lava bed, sourced through boreholes. This means water remains at a stable temperature so the salmon lives, feeds and grows in optimum conditions.
The 75% flow-through system, which uses 25% recirculated waters, is designed to ensure fish enjoy fresh, clean and highly oxygenated water. The farm also uses feed from environmentally certified suppliers, while the salmon are free of pesticides, hormones or antibiotics.
It comes amid mounting scrutiny over conditions within the sea-farmed salmon sector. The Soil Association this month warned it would halt its accreditation of organic farms if “meaningful progress” was not delivered in the next year. Following an 18-month review, looking at welfare and environmental problems facing Scottish salmon farms, it concluded “the risks to fish welfare and environmental outcomes on organic salmon farms are not at a level that we can accept”.
This came in the wake of the publication of a report by campaign group WildFish in February, which claimed the sector was using greenwashing tactics.
Norwegian seafood giant Mowi also lost its RSPCA Assured accreditation on a farm on the Isle of Skye this month after a probe by environmental group, the Green Britain Foundation, which revealed footage alleging Atlantic salmon being left to suffocate for more than a minute; a fish’s head being crushed by a worker’s heel; and some fish being repeatedly beaten, according to The Times.
Elsewhere, the FAIRR Initiative, a global sustainable investor network, this week revealed major global farmed salmon producers were over-reliant on declining wild-caught fish for feed, with supplies at “breaking point”.
Farmed salmon rely on a feed mix including fishmeal and fish oil (FMFO), largely sourced from wild-caught fish.
All seven companies (Bakkafrost, Grieg Seafood ASA, Lerøy Seafood, Mowi, Multi X, SalMar and Salmones Camanchaca) assessed by FAIRR were found to still rely heavily on FMFO, which it said exposed them to operational, regulatory and reputational risks.
And despite some marginal improvements in feed efficiency, the growth in salmon production had outpaced these gains, it added.
“The salmon industry’s reliance on wild-caught fish for feed will continue to cause cost volatility in the near and mid-term as production scales, but feed supply remains constrained,” said FAIRR oceans programme manager Laure Boissat. “Without urgent investment in sustainable feed ingredient alternatives, this increased competition for limited natural resources puts profitability and resilience at risk.”
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