Astaxanthin might be the Achilles’ heel of the farmed salmon industry

If you type “farmed salmon” into Google, one of the first searches that will auto populate is “farmed salmon colour”.?

The colour of farmed salmon remains one of the most widely misunderstood topics in aquaculture among consumers.?

And it’s entirely the fault of the aquaculture industry.?

I have penned many articles arguing for better seafood marketing , greater transparency , and improved labelling laws in the seafood sector.?

Nowhere is the need for these things greater than in farmed salmon. And specifically the colour of farmed salmon.?

The pink and red hues of a salmon’s flesh are iconic indicators of this world famous fish.?

So why isn't the aquaculture industry being forthcoming about where farmed salmon get their colour from??

How salmon get their colour?

The primary factor influencing the colouration of salmon is their diet. Wild salmon obtain their pink colour from the natural pigments present in the food they consume. In the wild, salmon feast on a diet rich in marine life, including krill, shrimp, and various types of small fish. These animals are packed with compounds known as carotenoids, which are responsible for the stunning colors seen in foods like salmon, beets, and carrots.

Carotenoids are organic pigments that come in a range of colours, including red, orange, and yellow, divided in 2 major groups: carotenes and xanthophylls. The main specific carotenoid responsible for the pink coloration in salmon is astaxanthin of the xanthophyll group. This pigment is also a powerful antioxidant and plays a crucial role in the overall health and well-being of the salmon.

What about farmed salmon??

While wild salmon derive their pink colour naturally from the food they eat while swimming throughout the ocean, the situation is different for farmed salmon. In a farmed setting, salmon eat carefully formulated feed pellets, created by scientists to mimic their diet in the wild and ensure they’re still getting all the nutrients they need to thrive.?

To achieve the same pink hue, their feed needs to be supplemented with carotenoids like astaxanthin that they would normally get in the wild by eating krill and other crustaceans. Adding astaxanthin supplements to salmon feed mimic’s its diet in the wild and ensures that farmed salmon not only achieve the iconic pink hue but also receive the essential nutrients that contribute to their overall health.

However, not all astaxanthin is created equal.?

Astaxanthin can be added to farmed salmon feed through synthetic or natural methods; the latter being the only acceptable supplementation for many organic standards around the world and setting a new bar for salmon feed globally.?

Panaferd Natural Astaxanthin?

In the ongoing journey to develop the closest-to-nature salmon feeds that produce the highest quality, best tasting, and most sustainable salmon, one company is leading the way in terms of innovation for salmon colouring and driving a new standard for farmed salmon..?

Panaferd contains natural carotenoids including a type of natural astaxanthin that comes from the marine microorganism Paracoccus carotinifaciens. This microorganism is one of many components in the start of the food chain in the aquatic environment and produces one of the highest concentrations of carotenoids, including astaxanthin.

The process that is being used to produce Panaferd’s natural astaxanthin guarantees no GMOs, no additives, and no preservatives. It's the only type of astaxanthin supplement in salmon feed that’s compliant with the European Union's organic aquaculture standard. So if you’re a European seafood consumer, choosing fish that contains only natural astaxanthin can be as simple as:

• Choosing organic salmon?
• Choosing salmon from Iceland or Scotland, where synthetic forms of astaxanthin are not used at all

If you’re somewhere like the United States however, things can be a bit trickier as labelling can be more confusing. (We’ll be diving more into this in the next post in this series!)?

And while the industry has gotten away with not divulging the source of astaxanthin for this long, this might be the Achilles’s heel that takes down the industry in major countries like Norway, Chile, and Canada. Consumers are more aware than ever of where their food is coming from and what’s in it. A lack of transparency is a dangerous game to play with this generation of seafood consumers.

Transparency is the only way forward

I have been and will always be an advocate for this industry, but not everybody is. And consumers who are fooled this way are consumers who are lost forever.?

Salmon farming continues to be one of the most polarizing topics in seafood and those who want to see the industry fade away will look for any weakness or opportunity to take it down. A lack of disclosure around synthetic astaxanthin exposes the industry in a way that could be detrimental to its long-term growth.

And with consumer purchasing trends gearing more and more towards natural foods free of GMOs and synthetic additives, the aquaculture industry is at a tipping point where those using natural products can lean into this market advantage, but those not, potentially risk setting back aquaculture’s reputation even further.?

If you’re interested in learning more about the topic of colouring in aquaculture feed, stay tuned for more. This article is the first in a series of content that I am producing with natural astaxanthin producer, Panaferd.

This article is part of a paid partnership with Panaferd. All opinions are my own.