Essay #1 Draft

I grew up in King Cove, Alaska and was raised on the subsistence resources that I was surrounded by which included: fish, caribou, moose, birds, clams, and berries. I am very familiar with the taste of fresh wild foods. When I go to a restaurant outside of Alaska, I hardly ever order salmon because most of the time it is not wild Alaskan salmon but farmed salmon. The farmed salmon industry has made a large impact on the wild Alaskan salmon industry. Although most people agree that taste of fresh, wild Alaskan salmon is better, farmed salmon has a large share of the market because of demand, price, and quality.
Wild Alaskan salmon is great and the demand for salmon in the United States varies. Most of the salmon that is sold in the United State is used in restaurants, processed foods, canned, and in a variety of other ways. The demand for wild Alaskan salmon would be greater if it weren’t for the farmed salmon market. Most of the farmed salmon sales in the United States come from the Atlantic farmed salmon hatcheries with smaller ones throughout the nation. The United States also imports farmed fish from Chile. Chile farmed salmon is one of the largest markets in the world.
Most of the salmon sold in the United States seems to be fresh, frozen, or canned, and a small portion of the frozen domestic production is Alaskan sockeye salmon. One exception to that are vacuum-packed sockeye fillets, which are processed under Portlock brand from Port Chatham Seafood, which is a subsidiary of Trident Seafoods. An example of marketing wild Alaskan salmon products in a variety of ways to impact the salmon markets are: Copper River Red Salmon, Aleutia Salmon, Bristol Bay Sockeye, and Kenai King.
An increase in demand for farmed salmon has had a negative effect on Alaskan fisherman. Due to the price drop for wild Alaskan salmon it has had a major impact on Alaskan commercial fisherman, especially with the cost of living in Alaska alone. The cost of fuel is getting high and higher and with the low prices that fish buyers are giving it makes it hard to make a profit. Not only are fisherman suffering, there family who depend on fish for a living are as well. Not only that many small communities in Alaska whose main economy comes from the fishing industry are as well.
Salmon sales worldwide remain strong, despite some hitches this year--notably a disease outbreak at Chilean salmon farms that threatens to further reduce production and exports. Wild Alaska Salmon has a better texture, taste, and appearance than farmed salmon. Farmed salmon has a soft texture, pale in color and bland in taste. The state of Alaska has promoted fresh wild salmon as being more nutritious than farmed salmon. The potential for diseases in the farmed salmon is high because of the environment they are produced and raised in.
In conclusion, wild Alaskan salmon is much tastier and healthier for you. The impact of farmed salmon on Alaskan fishermen exists today.