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Salmon Tales: PCB Findings in Wild and Farmed Salmon
"In fact, it is virtually inevitable that all wild and farmed fish will
contain trace amounts of PCBs and other chemicals that are in the food chain." -FarmFreshSalmon.org
A Common Misconception:
The Commonly believed notion is that farmed salmon has higher levels of PCBs
and other chemicals in it than their wild counterparts. The evidence, however,
often points to the contrary. Wild salmon, according
to a plethora of scholarly sources, often contains HIGHER levels of PCBs (but are
still safe by government standards) and mercury than their farmed counterparts. The
studies follow:
The Easton (et al.) study: "our State regulatory body has measured levels of PCBs
in wild fish as high as 400,000,000ppt (400ppm)."1
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Dr. Santerre, an Associate Professor in the Dept. of Foods and Nutrition at Purdue
University says: "Our laboratory has demonstrated that farm-raised fish generally
are much lower in contaminants because they are fed commercial feed rather than
having to obtain their food in other manners."2,3
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A study conducted by Circumpolar Conservation Union showed that PCB levels in wild
Alaskan Copper River Sockeye salmon ranged from 67ppb to 791ppb, dwarfing
the reported 50ppb of PCBs found in farmed Atlantic Salmon in the Eastons (et al.) study.
And according to the Environmental Working Group (EWG) study in 2003, the average number of
PCBs found in farmed Atlantic Salmon was a meager 27ppb.
4
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In a study conducted by the state Department of Fish and Wildlife in Puget Sound, wild
Chinook salmon were found to contain 2-3 times the level of PCBs as the farmed salmon from
the EWG study (27ppb). In 34 wild ocean-going Chinooks, the study found PCBs levels averaging
at 74.2ppb, and in 144 river-going Chinooks, PCBs were measured at 49.1ppb.5
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Follow the link
to view the entire study for free.
http://www.wdfw.wa.gov/fish/psamp/toxiccontaminants.pdf
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*NOTE* Both wild salmon and farmed salmon have been examined for contaminants
by the USFDA and have been determined to be safe and highly nutritious.
[REFERENCES]
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I want to learn more about...
Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs)
Flawed Science and Misinformation
What the experts are saying (Expert Criticism)
Organic-Farmed Salmon
Conclusions
Salmon Tales Home
These are some available online resources:
Salmon Nutritional Information
http://www.farmfreshsalmon.org
Title: Farmed salmon, PCBs, Activists, and the Media
Title: Who Says PCBs Cause Cancer?
The complete, unabridged, definitive source for all PCB information.
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