The expanding salmon farming sector addresses the growing demand for protein and presents opportunities for sustainable food production. This industry uses innovative techniques and technologies to encourage environmental stewardship. Nowadays, salmon farming plays a significant role in aquaculture worldwide, offering a delicious and sustainable seafood choice. It is more important than ever to comprehend the elements affecting the quality of farmed salmon, such as its color, as consumers become pickier about the foods they eat. In this article, we will look at the advantages of salmon farming while highlighting the importance of transparency in the industry.
As we all know, salmon is a great choice for healthy eating due to its well-known high omega-3 fatty acids, vitamins, and minerals. By sustainably providing this vital protein source, salmon farming is important in global nutrition.
Is There a Connection Between Salmon’s Color and Its Nutritional Value?
Salmon's pink and red colors are not just for beauty but also signify the kind of diet the fish has and its health condition. Carotenoids, mainly from marine forms such as krill and shrimp, are responsible for bright color salmon. Besides being important for coloring, these pigments -astaxanthin, in particular- have antioxidant properties that benefit the fish's health. The color of salmon results from a precisely engineered diet in an artificial farm environment. Aquaculture specialists formulate feed replicating the nutritional profile from which wild salmon pick up the required carotenoids to the closest degree possible. Farmed salmon feed needs added natural astaxanthin to maintain the health benefits found in the fish and to produce its desired pink color. One of the most promising developments in salmon farming is natural astaxanthin from marine microorganisms such as Paracoccus carotinifaciens. This natural pigment provides a more comprehensive approach to salmon nutrition than synthetic substitutes.
The benefits of natural astaxanthin include:
- Enhanced Nutritional Value: Natural astaxanthin contains a broader range of carotenoids, providing additional antioxidant benefits that synthetic versions lack.
- Sustainability: Natural astaxanthin-accredited suppliers follow strict regulations on safety and the environment. Thus, the farmed salmon is free from genetically modified organisms and artificial substances. This concern for quality meets the requirements enforced by the European Union regarding organic aquaculture standards.
Customers’ trust and faith can be built only when there is transparency in sourcing and production processes. Because the public becomes more aware of their food, seafood product buyers expect to know much more about its production origins. This should include how astaxanthin is sourced and how ingredients used in fish feeding, including aquaculture, are sourced.
Salmon producers can, by literally addressing the consumer’s appetite to know everything concerning the culturing of this fish and the origin of natural astaxanthin, achieve the following goals:
• Boost Consumer Confidence: Consumers’ purchasing behavior is largely influenced by their knowledge about the products' quality, forcing their practices to be in healthy and environmentally friendly goods.
• Mitigate Misinformation: This knowledge will also assist the industry when it is always under arms, informing counterstories and stating that fresh salmon farming benefits are responsibly sourced.
Salmon farming greatly benefits local economies by promoting nutrition and health. It boosts economic growth and generates employment opportunities in communities dependent on aquaculture. Companies that emphasize transparent operations and sustainable practices can guarantee long-term sustainability and community support.
References:
Beifang Li, Ji-Young Lee, Yangchao Luo, Health benefits of astaxanthin and its encapsulation for improving bioavailability: A review,
Journal of Agriculture and Food Research, Volume 14, 2023, 100685, ISSN 2666-1543, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jafr.2023.100685.
Anderson, Stewart. (2012). Salmon Color and the Consumer. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/237293029_Salmon_Color_and_the_Consumer
A Comparative Analysis of the Nutritional Quality of Salmon Species in Canada among Different Production Methods and Regions
Caroline R. Gillies, Euichan Jung, Stefanie M. Colombo, First published: 15 December 2023, https://doi.org/10.1155/2023/5542117
