One of my all time favorite fish is salmon.  It’s rich, fatty and loaded with nutrition like the essential fatty acids EPA & DHA (omega-3s), B-vitamins,  potassium, selenium and more.

However, we must remember that food & the nutrition in it is only as good as it’s source (how it’s raised, how it’s grown, etc).

When looking for a salmon source, or really, any fish source, I always recommend trying to find a wild-caught source versus a “farmed” version.  Here’s one main reason why:

Many factory farmed fisheries are much like land animal factory farms (CAFO) – usually fed unnatural diet of grain & legume (corn, soy, etc. and likely GMO), given antibiotics, growth promotents, and more.  Fish aren’t designed to eat this stuff, they never have in the whole history of, well, fish…when’s the last time we saw a corn plant growing in the ocean and a fish eating corn on the cob from it?

We haven’t, ever.

It would be like if I fed you processed junk food or fast food all your life…you’re not designed to eat that stuff, right?  Let alone all your life?  And what do you think your state of health would be like if you ate junk food every day of your life… optimal health? or poor health?

Same goes for the fish (or any animal) that eats an unnatural diet and lives an unnatural lifestyle, that we at the top of the food chain ultimately eats; and as we know, we are what we eat, we are how it’s grown and we are how it’s raised.

Here’s some more things you should know about farmed fish.

Since we’re on the topic of Salmon, I should add we also have GMO salmon in the pipeline to be approved by the FDA.  According to FoodandWaterWatch.org, “the biotechnology industry says it has genetically modified a fish that grows at twice the normal rate, so it can get to market sooner and make more money, faster. But this dangerous lab experiment is all hype and full of downsides to consumers, salmon growers and the environment”.  More so, a Canadian risk assessment conducted by Canadian government scientists refute the FDA and found that GMO salmon are susceptible to disease.

Remember, food industry is just that, industry.  With Big Food, it’s all about business and “the bottom line”, not health.  The bigger and more fish produced to maximize X amount of fish farm space = more $ per unit (and thus profits) when fish are ready to go to processing, then shipping, and finally ending up in our major grocery stores that we then buy and eat (this includes fresh fish at the fish counter and frozen fish).

I’m even a bit weary of the “responsibly farmed” fish signs we can find at Whole Foods… however I will eat it if I know the farming practices and wild-caught fish is not available.  Whole Foods seems to be fairly transparent so you can decide, but that doesn’t mean all fish farms are when we see a “responsibly farmed” or “sustainably farmed” sign.  Both those terms, “responsible” and “sustainable”, actually carry no legal meaning in terms of labels (much like how “natural” means nothing on a label and is often used by Big Food to portray a positive perception to the consumer).

As I always say, “Know your farmer, so you know your food” (i.e. ask questions and find out how produce was grown and animals were raised, including fish in fish farms).

For this recipe, I used wild-caught Alaskan salmon I got at my local fish market.  In terms of integrity source, it’s one of the best we can eat.

Overall this caramelized maple salmon salad is recipe-friendly:

• Paleo
• Vegetarian (pesco)
• ReBoot Protocol Week 2+ (see Kitchen Notes below for serving)
• Gluten & Grain-free
• Dairy-free
• 100% Real Food ingredients

Let’s “dive” in..

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