From: CBC

Wild salmon fraud a widespread problem, says new report

Farmed salmon sold as wild salmon a common scam, most often in restaurants

DNA testing has proven that the sale of farmed Atlantic salmon fraudulently labelled as wild salmon is a widespread problem, according to a new report.

The study by conservation group Oceana used 82 samples gathered in grocery stores and restaurants in the United States to uncover widespread salmon mislabelling.

A whopping 43 per cent of the samples were found to be mislabelled, and more than two-thirds of those were Atlantic farmed salmon being passed off as wild salmon.

Wild salmon products fetch a premium in the marketplace, usually costing up to a third more. …

Key findings in the Oceana study include:

• 43 per cent of salmon samples collected and tested were mislabelled.

• The most common form of mislabelling was farmed Atlantic salmon being sold as wild salmon — 69 per cent.

• Restaurants wrongly identified salmon five times as often as grocery stores.

• Salmon is less likely to be mislabelled in-season versus out-of-season, especially in restaurants.

• Products that include additional information like the type of salmon (chinook, sockeye, coho, etc.) were less likely to be mislabelled.

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