Atlantic salmon, the dominant species used in salmon aquaculture, are piscivorous: They naturally eat other fish. The rapid expansion of the industry from an estimated 33,800 metric tons in 1984¹ to almost 3 million metric tons in 2024², along with the growth of other types of aquaculture and agriculture, has put tremendous pressure on wild fish populations around the world. 

Fish meal and fish oil are essential ingredients in feed formulas used in salmon farming. Today, it is estimated that more than 50% of the 1-2 tillion wild fish caught each year around the world are ground up, rendered, and fed to farmed fish, including salmon³.

In the past it took between two and four kilograms of wild caught fish to produce one kilogram of farmed salmon⁴, but this ratio has diminished in recent years thanks to improved formulations and new ingredients like insect protein⁵. The industry says that it now takes a little more than one kilogram of feed to grow one kilogram of salmon⁶, but studies that measure the total weight of wild-caught fish used, not just the amount that ends up in the feed, have found that it still takes anywhere from 1.8 kilograms to as much as 5.5 kilograms to produce 1 kilogram of salmon, depending on what feed compostion is used⁷.

Salmon farming companies have contributed to the growth of forage fish fisheries around the world – species like menhaden, anchovies, mackerel, and sardines – devastating the base of ocean food webs and transferring edible fish from communities in the global south to consumers in places like Europe and North America^8,9.

Peru remains the world’s largest producer of fish meal and fish oil, sending one million tons to markets in Canada, the U.S., the U.K., and European Union, among other destinations, every year¹⁰. Overfishing, corruption, and intense pollution are features of the industry, which is carried out at such a scale that it negatively affects Pacific Ocean productivity over a vast area.

West African countries like Senegal, Mauritania, and Gambia are also trouble spots. The fish meal and fish oil industry in the region has grown tenfold since 2010 and has direct ties to salmon farming companies¹¹. This rush has led to rampant illegal, unregulated, and unreported fishing and intense coastal pollution near rendering plants, depriving people of food and livelihoods^12,13. 

In short: Farmed salmon are fed large amounts of fish meal and fish oil, which are made from wild-caught forage fish such as anchovies, sardines and mackerel. These small fish are a vital and affordable source of protein for millions of people in developing countries, where they play a key role in food security.

However, industrial aquaculture diverts these resources to produce salmon for wealthier markets, leaving vulnerable communities facing increased food shortages. This shift strains marine ecosystems and sustains an inequitable food system.

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