Displacing Nutrition: The Role of Salmon Aquaculture in Global Inequality

Atlantic salmon, the dominant species in salmon aquaculture, are piscivorous: they naturally eat other fish. The rapid expansion of the industry from an estimated 33,800 metric tons in 1984 to over 2.5 million metric tons in 2004, along with the growth of other types of aquaculture and agriculture, has put tremendous pressure on wild fish populations around the world.¹ 

Fish meal and fish oil are essential ingredients in feed formulas used in salmon farming. Today, it is estimated that 20 percent of wild fish caught each year around the world are ground up, rendered, and fed to farmed fish, including salmon. 

Studies show that it takes between two and four kilograms² of wild caught fish to produce one kilogram of farmed salmon.² Although this ratio has diminished in recent years thanks to improved formulations and new ingredients like insect protein³, it is generally accepted⁴ that more than one kilogram of wild fish is still needed to grow one kilogram of salmon.⁴

Salmon farming companies have contributed to the growth of forage fish fisheries around the world - species like menhaden, anchovy, mackerel, and sardines - devastating the base of ocean food webs, and transferring edible fish from communities in the global south to consumers in places like Europe and North America.⁵

Peru remains the world’s largest producer of fish meal and fish oil, sending 1-million tons to markets in Canada, U.S.A., the United Kingdom, and European Union, among other destinations, every year. Overfishing, corruption, and intense pollution are features of the industry, which is carried out at such a scale that it negatively affects Pacific ocean productivity over a vast area.⁶ 

West African countries like Senegal, Mauritania, and Gambia are also trouble spots. The fish meal, fish oil industry in the region has grown 10-fold since 2010⁷ and has direct ties to salmon farming companies. This rush has led to rampant illegal, unregulated, and unreported fishing, intense coastal pollution near rendering plants, depriving people of food and livelihoods.⁸ 

Farmed salmon are fed large amounts of fishmeal and fish oil, which are made from wild-caught forage fish such as anchovies, sardines and mackerel.⁹ These small fish are a vital and affordable source of protein for millions of people in developing countries, where they play a key role in food security. ¹⁰

However, industrial aquaculture diverts these resources to produce salmon for wealthier markets, leaving vulnerable communities facing increased food shortages. This shift strains marine ecosystems and sustains an inequitable food system. ^11,12

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