Onshore Salmon Farm Proving Economically Viable,
Ecologically Responsible

A salmon aquaculture operation in British Columbia is proving that onshore salmon farming is a wise investment capable of producing high quality seafood without destroying the environment. Kuterra farm, owned by the Namgis First Nation, is one of only a handful of commercial-scale onshore salmon farms in the world. As a model for sustainable aquaculture, Kuterra recycles its water through an onsite filtration system, processes salmon waste into fertilizer, avoids the use of pesticides and antibiotics, and relies on (hopefully organic) soy and grain as feed. Kuterra has sold over 600,000 pounds of its fish since it began harvesting them 14 months ago. Salmon grown under these conditions respond favorably, growing twice as quickly as their ocean-farmed counterparts. Conventional ocean-based salmon farming relies on net pens, which suspend farmed salmon in the open ocean environment where they can communicate diseases to wild fish, pollute waterways and may also escape to salmon spawning habitat, where they invade and dilute the natural gene pool. PCFFA and IFR have long advocated for sustainable, onshore salmon aquaculture operations to replace ocean net pens, given the environmental benefits exemplified by the Kuterra farm.