Wild V.S Domestic or: How I learned to stop worrying and love domestication.

[akjaster]

It seems that what relates these two events is the high demand for salmon. The wild population of salmon can never meet the demand, not without over fishing. This is what lead to the start of domestication, with the rising demand more and more companies will turn to farmed fish than wild caught due to price and availability. This will in turn put less and less strain on the wild salmon.

[smoswald2]

Though domesticated salmon were the result of increased demand, and it could be beneficial if farming methods are changed, the way that domestic salmon are raised today is having a negative effect on wild salmon stocks in my opinion. I think that domestically raised salmon is a good option, but only if problems such as their food source (which is typically wild caught fish, the same that wild salmon eat), as well as disease and escapement are sorted out.

[AJ]

Domesticated salmon certainly seems to a sort of saving grace. Paul Greenberg mentioned that “Every year three billion pounds of farmed salmon are produced… three times the amount of wild fish harvested”. Offhand, that seems to take a lot pressure off of wild salmon, but I think it’s important to consider the affects farms have on wild populations. For example, tamed and wild salmon breeding, tamed salmon taking wild salmon resources only be unable to breed later on, and the pollution farms release into the rivers.

[Author]

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