Finger Lickin' Good? Farmed Salmon Feed Contains Chicken Parts

Victoria, BC May 15, 2004--According to information obtained from BC rendering plants and US court documents, chicken parts, including blood, carcasses, and feathers, are ingredients in farmed salmon feed.

West Coast Reduction Ltd., which services BC's slaughtering facilities, has informed Raincoast Conservation Society that farmed salmon feed companies purchase different combinations of renderedproducts including chicken remains and chicken blood meal.

This substantiates that practices in BC parallel those outlined in US District Court of Maine documents from 2002. These documents revealed that a subsidiary of George Weston's Heritage Salmon utilized feed containing chicken feathers, chicken blood, and chicken carcasses. Heritage was charged for polluting the marine environment and paid a $750,000 out of court settlement.

"From PCB contamination, to sea lice outbreaks, to this current fish feed controversy, consumers are fed up with this industry's lack of accountability to them and the environment," said Theresa Rothenbush, Salmon Aquaculture Specialist for the Raincoast Conservation Society. "We are calling for mandatory labeling and full disclosure of the exact ingredients, including chemical and drug inputs, being used to produce farmed salmon."

Chicken parts are approved for use in fish feed by the Canadian Food Inspection Agency and spokespeople from the agency maintain they are safe for consumption. The CFIA has confirmed that undersized chickens culled in connection with the avian-flu outbreaks are being processed for animal feed as well as food for human consumption.

"Government and industry continue to resist supporting the creation of federal labeling laws. The lack of such laws makes Canada inferior to many other jurisdictions. For example, since January 2002 European Union labeling laws have required retailers to clearly state whether or not the salmon they sell is wild or farmed, its country of origin, and the area of production. In addition some jurisdictions are required to label for additives to farmed fish," said Rothenbush.

In the past weeks and months farmed salmon has made headlines throughout the world as a result residues of the banned carcinogenic fungicide Malachite Green, PCBs, and illegal chemicals.

Raincoast Conservation Society is a member of the Coastal Alliance for Aquaculture Reform, a coalition of conservation groups, fishermen, and First Nations working together to reform destructive salmon farming practices.





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