Wild vs. Farmed Salmon, Experts Explain the Difference

While I try to diversify my diet as often as I can, when it comes to protein, I mostly eat fish. My favorite, salmon, is mild with pink flesh, readily available, and relatively affordable. However, these days, picking out a filet can be tricky. Between farm-raised and wild, I often find myself torn. I wonder, does buying wild salmon contribute to overfishing? Does farm-raised salmon mean there might be pesticides or antibiotics involved?

Unsure of how to responsibly buy salmon and what the differences were in taste and texture, I asked five experts to weigh in.

The Experts I Spoke To

• Alisha Lumea: Chief Marketing Officer at Wulf's Fish
• Jade Taylor: Owner of Charleston-based Salmon Smokehouse, Angel Oak Smokehouse
• Emma Teal Privat: Co-founder and Creative Director of Salmon Sisters
• Dennis Littley: Chef and recipe expert at Ask Chef Dennis
• Bob Partrite: Chief Operating Officer at Simco Restaurants

The Difference Between Wild and Farm-Raised Salmon

“Wild and farm-raised salmon might look similar, but they’re pretty different in terms of how they’re raised, how they taste, and how they cook,” says Littley. Where “wild salmon live in natural habitats and eat a diet of smaller fish, plankton, and marine life,” explains Privat, “farm-raised salmon live in pens or tanks, consuming a diet of processed fish meal and additives.”

As a result, adds Littley, wild salmon tends to have “a firmer texture and a slightly brinier flavor,” whereas farmed salmon will have a higher fat content and milder taste. Its higher fat content makes it more forgiving when cooked. 

It’s not just diet and habitat that differentiate the two types of salmon. “The biggest thing to know about farmed and wild salmon,” says Lumea, “is that you are working with six different species, all quite different in taste, texture, and fat content and no more related to each other than beef and lamb.”

Privat explains that there are five species of wild Pacific salmon: “King, Sockeye (Red), Coho (Silver), Pink, and Chum (Keta).” Atlantic salmon (whose wild population is endangered and no longer wild-caught) is predominately raised in salmon farms. 

Taylor, in her smoked salmon business, prefers using responsibly raised Atlantic salmon, favoring its “fat content, consistent sizings, and year-round availability.” While she shies away from wild salmon because its leaner makeup doesn’t cater to smoking, Partrite says, “I like wild fish because I know that it wasn’t fed or raised with any antibiotics or on feed that is high in fish by-products.”

However, he adds, “If wild salmon isn’t available, I will purchase from salmon farms that use a sustainable feed that is made with either plant-based or agricultural by-products and that have a recirculating aquaculture system which reduces the chances for contamination to the water system and keeps other seafood species safe.”

Is Farmed Salmon Sustainable?

There are significant concerns about the environmental impact of salmon farms. These concerns have been voiced by a number of reputable sources, such as the World Wildlife Fund, which says that salmon farming "has significant potential for negative impact on the places and species we seek to protect,” citing concerns over the contamination of natural habitats due to chemical inputs, disease, escaped farmed fish, and waste pollution.

It also notes that salmon farms often potentially employ questionable labor practices. If you have concerns about the environmental impact of farmed salmon production, seek out salmon farmed from an ASC-certified (The Aquaculture Stewardship Council) farm, as the council offers certification contingent upon strict environmental standards. 

All in all, opting for wild or farmed comes down to personal preference. If you’re looking for a leaner fish, go wild. For a milder option, you may want to choose farmed. Doing research into salmon farms can help if you’re concerned about the feed used or general sustainability practices.