Whole Foods announces standards for farmed fish
Acknowledging that "All of our seafood is under close scrutiny from the farm or boat all the way to our seafood case", Whole Foods Market recently announced its new standards for farmed fish sold from its 270 stores in North America and the UK. The company claims to be the "world's leading retailer of natural and organic foods". While most of the announced standards make a lot of sense, the clause about "No use of antibiotics" does not. Any farmer- be it a cattle rancher, a pig farmer or a fish farmer- would rather treat a sick animal with antibiotics than watch it suffer and potentially die. The clause is also inappropriate from a practical point of view.
Take the farming of Atlantic salmon in British Columbia as an example. Very seldom do farmers have to use antibiotics during the last year or so of an 18-22 month typical growth cycle. Most antibiotics given to farmed Atlantic salmon in B.C. is for the treatment of "mouth rot"- a myxobacterial infection common in newly entered smolt. These treatments typically don't take place after the fish has been in sea water for some 6-8 months, leaving the fish over a year to clear any residual level of the medicine. The longest time of delay between treatment and legal harvesting for consumption for any antibiotic licenced for use in B.C. is 80 days.
The Whole Foods web site provides the following details of its standards and some background:
"When it comes to farmed seafood, we know exactly where ours comes from, what it was fed...and more importantly, what it wasn't fed! When it's done responsibly, fish farming- also known as aquaculture- provides high-quality fish, can be environmentally friendly, and can be a crucial way to supplement the supply of wild-caught fish. And we know we can trust the farmers we partner with because they are world leaders in environmentally responsible aquaculture. Together with scientists and environmentalists, they helped us to develop our strict Quality Standards for Aquaculture, which include:
- No use of antibiotics, added growth hormones and poultry and mammalian by-products in feed.
- Traceability that allows us to track our farmed seafood�where it came from and how it got to our stores.
- Requirements that producers minimize the impacts of fish farming on the environment by protecting sensitive habitats such as mangrove forests and wetlands, monitoring water quality to prevent pollution, and sourcing feed ingredients responsibly.
- Strict protocols to ensure that farmed seafood is not escaping into the environment and that wildlife around the farm is protected".
