Low Mercury Fish

Susanna Cellucci

Susanna CellucciFounder

Published September 24, 2021 Updated September 15, 2026

Conventional Food

It is estimated that nearly 80% of the seafood that the United States consumes is imported from overseas. A significant portion is sourced from farms with unsustainable practices.

Imported from overseas: unsafe practices and condition that ruins our oceans 

Unsustainable farms: polluting and isleading  

❌ Mercury and Toxins in Fish: Mercury and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) find their way into the ground, lakes, and ocean water from industrial waste and households, and then they reach fish. Some types of fish may contain high levels of mercury, PCBs(polychlorinated biphenyls), dioxins, and other environmental contaminants. Levels of these substances are generally highest in older, larger, predatory fish and marine mammals. Five of the most commonly eaten fish or shellfish that are low in mercury are shrimp, canned light tuna, salmon, pollock, and catfish. Avoid eating shark, swordfish, king Mackerel, or tilefish because they contain high levels of mercury. FDA

Tuna, swordfish, and shark: unhealthy for mercury content 

Greenwashing Fish: Seafood Fraud

Mislabeled fish is a major issue in restaurants and grocery stores because the global seafood supply chain relies on a limited stock of fish and prioritizes cheap, readily available products. Consequently, premium fish like red snapper, grouper, sea bass, halibut, or salmon are frequently swapped for cheaper, different species.

The ocean advocacy group Oceana conducted DNA testing on samples of salmon collected from stores and restaurants in the United States. The study discovered that 43% of the samples were either farmed, Atlantic salmon marketed as wild salmon or a totally different species.

❌ Avoid greenwashing salmon, which is misleading. Atlantic salmon is often a deceiving marketing trick to sell you farmed salmon. 

Irresponsible farmed salmon is full of toxins. Furthermore, salmon feedlots incubate diseases at abnormal levels and transfer those diseases to wild fish populations with devastating effects.

Unless you know your source avoid farmed fish!

1. Check Its Fat: The flesh of a farmed salmon typically has thick white stripes of fat.

2. Notice the Color: Wild salmon are typically a deeper red than farmed. 

3. Check the price: Wild salmon is almost always more expensive than farmed.

Wild Caught Fish

💠Wild caught salmon is caught in natural environments such as oceans, rivers, and lakes,

It eats other organisms found in their natural environment, and they are healthier and with brighter natural colors. Rich in healthy omega nutrients and minerals.

Farmed fish are contained in smaller spaces and have a completely different diet and environment from wild fish. They are given a processed, high-fat, high-protein feed in order to produce larger fish. Since farmed salmon has three times the total fat of wild salmon, a large part of these fats are omega-6 fatty acids, making them more inflammatory.

✅ Wild Alaskan salmon is one of Mother Nature’s superfoods.

✅ Alaska has the best-managed fisheries in the world: Due to severe environmental and ecological concerns, it is illegal to farm salmon and any other finfish in Alaska. The State of Alaska’s constitution explicitly mandates that all fisheries be managed sustainably. Industrial pollution is heavily restricted, making Alaskan waters among the cleanest and most well-monitored marine habitats on earth.

The Safest Fish

No fishmeal, no antibiotics, and no human intervention.​

Frozen within 3 hours without the use of chemical preservatives like sodium triphosphate.

I have become very concerned about mercury and other toxins in fish. I reduced my fish intake, and I replaced my fish oil with vegan fish oil (algae-based)

The Best Sustainable Fish Brands 

 

 

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