Smoked salmon, which one? The delicacy that was once reserved for the few as rare and expensive is now available everywhere, with affordable prices and variety of choices. But what to choose between Norway, Scotland and Ireland, Alaska and Canada? Wild and farmed? Does it cost as much as it is worth? And what other claims to look for on the label?
‘Almost fresh’ fish is always ready, a real wild card in the refrigerator. All it takes is a clump of salad, some bread and a drizzle of butter for a gourmet dinner, or nearly so. Without even needing to use the stove. And it is also recommended by nutritionists because of the Omega-3 fatty acids that are so good for health. But quality and sustainability vary significantly, between products. ABC to follow.
Wild salmon, the good points
Wild salmon is preferred by many as it is associated with natural balances, as opposed to more or less intensive farming. True. In fact, the ‘wild:
– feeds according to nature, rather than being fattened and ‘colored’ with performance feeds,
– Is free of antibiotics and other veterinary drugs,
– swims freely, far more than its fellows enclosed in crowded nets in the open sea.
Its meat is dry, firm. Their nutritional profile is better due to lower fat content. Moreover, the products available on the shelf are derived from specimens that are very different in tonnage, flavor, and texture. The front of the labels read only the trade name, ‘wild Alaskan smoked salmon‘. In fact, products distributed in Europe are derived almost exclusively from fisheries in the North Pacific Ocean between Alaska and Canada. Instead, the fish species is specified in the ingredient list.
Wild, red or king salmon?
In Italy, the most common species of wild salmon are two:
– Sockeye or red salmon(Oncorhynchus nerka). It is a small fish whose fillets easily lend themselves to fixed-weight packaging in 80-100 gram cases. Deep red color, firm texture, relatively cheap price (about 40 €/kg),
– Red king or king salmon(Oncorhynchus tshawytscha). A fish so large that it fits tightly in the cases, with fillets weighing as much as 3-4 kg. The color is less intense than Sockeye and is sometimes de-pigmented right on the muscle. Soft almost spreadable. It is a real fish precisely, from great bargains and spending capacity (>100 €/kg). It is found in some premium lines and more easily in gastro-stores.
Farmed salmon, multiple passports to the identical species
The farmed salmon belongs to the species Salmo Salar. Therefore, the trade names that appear on the label front – e.g., ‘Norwegian salmon,’ ‘Scottish salmon’ – are valid to distinguish products by country of farming. The differences are significant, far greater than those found in other aquaculture products (e.g., Italian sea bream vs. Greek sea bream), for two simple reasons:
– animal welfare and ecosystem protection are guarded, in Norway (a non-EU country), through stricter rules than those applied in Scotland,
– veterinary controls by Scandinavian authorities are tight. Comparable to those in Scotland, as an accurate survey by Britain’s national broadcaster recently showed. (1)
After an initial rearing phase in freshwater tanks, the animals are reared at sea. Inside large floating nets that tend to pollute water and seabed by dropping uneaten feed, feces and antibiotics.
Meat quality is related to the feed given to the animals. But the real quality, in farmed fish, is to be found in the non-use of antibiotics. Which moreover can be avoided by vaccinating salmon against the main diseases that can affect them.
Farmed salmon, the costs of Omega 3
The fat content varies extraordinarily, from 3 to 15 percent, depending on whether the salmon is wild or farmed, Norwegian or Scottish. Where the higher fat content, in farmed fish, stems from reduced exercise capacity but also from the amounts of fat matter added to the feed.
The presence of Omega 3 fats generally varies between 0.3 and 0.6 g per 100, and comes from the use of fish oil feed. Which is obtained, as well as fishmeal, from species of modest commercial value (e.g., herring and other bluefish). But overexploitation of the seas-which has drastically reduced fish stocks-and increased demand for these species in Asian markets have made the use of these resources unsustainable.
Paradoxically, the richness in Omega 3 in farmed salmon is based on two assumptions that are difficult to accept ethically:
– Overexploitation of natural fish resources to produce more fish oil. So much so that at one time the derivatives of 6-7 kg of ‘wild’ fish were used to obtain 1 kg of Salmo. Now they would like to strive for an equal (1:1) contribution because of the need to keep production costs down,
– Animal sickness. The more contained the Salmo are, due to the concentration of fish in the net, the less they swim and the fatter they get.
Sustainability and innovation in animal feed
The search for feeds more sustainable than fish oil is shifting to other matrices. The use of ocean shrimp(Krill) is still widespread, exposing another fish species to the risk of extinction. And other protein sources, foreign to the marine environment, are considered. Such as insect meal-which expresses great potential, as noted -and soybean.
Soy is an excellent source of high biological value plant protein with a rich amino acid portfolio. Protein is obtained following the extraction of oil from the seeds by mechanical pressing and/or solvents (hexane) and forms the basis of cattle feed. However, the sustainability of this resource is intertwined with that of agricultural crops. Therefore, the relevance of the Buycott! campaign and petition against GMO soybeans resulting from land robbery and deforestation is once again reaffirmed.
If European agriculture proves capable of producing non-GMO soybeans by adopting specifications that ensure their true sustainability, it will be possible to reduce the environmental impact of salmon farms. In fact, Salmo Salar needs a lot of protein in the juvenile stage, and it is sufficient to include sources of Omega 3 in the last 6 months of breeding for the valuable fats to transfer to the meat.
‘Naturally smoked’ or ‘with smoke flavor’?
Fish is smoked according to two completely different techniques, which affect the color, texture and flavor composition of the food:
– ‘Natural smoking’. The fish are placed on a grill and exposed to smoke from burning wood chips. The wood used varies according to the tastes of the target markets. In Italy, beech is favored; in northern Europe, oak and other plants give the salmon a more pronounced aroma,
– Smoke aroma. A whole different story is that of ‘natural smoke flavorings‘. Which are liquid or powdered substances that are smeared on meats or injected into their tissues. The adoption of this ‘alternative’ smoking process is revealed by the mention of‘(natural) smoke flavor(s)‘ on the label, in the list of ingredients.
The difference in value is substantial. In natural smoking, the fish loses water, dries out and concentrates flavor profiles. Instead, the added flavorings serve the function of maintaining weight and moisture, much to the chagrin of traditional flavors. Quality and processing costs drop dramatically, as do prices (from 45-50 to 25 euros/kg).
The traditional smoking technique, after all, requires professionalism and care. At the risk of contamination by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which can be formed if wood combustion takes place at uncontrolled temperatures.
‘Dry salted’ or immersed in brine
Salt added to smoked salmon generally ranges from 2.5 to 4 percent. Sodium chloride fulfills the dual function of imparting flavor and preserving the product. As is also used in the processing of meat from land animals (e.g., prosciutto crudo, bresaola, carne salada). Research and development should therefore be pursued to reduce salt in all such products, as well as in Ready To Eat vegan foods. Taking into account the safety threshold defined by WHO and Efsa as 5g/day of salt for adults.
The addition of salt on salmon can be done in two ways:
– ‘dry salted’
. According to tradition, salt spreading is done manually. More abundant on the back, where the muscle is thicker, less on the inner side. A more expensive yet more precise method that minimizes the risk of bacterial contamination,
– immersion in brine. The fillets are soaked in a solution of water and salt. However, labor cost savings are matched by less accurate salting and reduced durability of the food as it is exposed to bacterial contamination through the liquid.
Marta Strinati and Dario Dongo
Notes
(1) Lucy Adams. (2019). Is there a problem with salmon farming? BBC Panorama, https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-scotland-48266480
Professional journalist since January 1995, he has worked for newspapers (Il Messaggero, Paese Sera, La Stampa) and periodicals (NumeroUno, Il Salvagente). She is the author of journalistic surveys on food, she has published the book "Reading labels to know what we eat".
Dario Dongo, lawyer and journalist, PhD in international food law, founder of WIISE (FARE - GIFT - Food Times) and Égalité.
