Salmon
How do you tackle one of the most complex food-sourcing challenges in the world?
For us, finding sustainable commercial salmon fisheries means years of diligent research and, thankfully, the guidance and wisdom of experts—fish biologists, conservation advocates and NGOs. Together, we’ve identified places where our business can not only leave a minimal footprint, but actually make a positive impact on wild salmon populations.
We have three types of salmon:
North Pacific Wild Sockeye
Photo By Amy Kumler
Our wild sockeye are harvested from the icy waters of the North Pacific, mainly Alaska, in well-managed, place-based fisheries near the mouths of rivers.
Instead of drift nets, we use short-set gill nets that are checked every few hours, and bycatch is minimal.
Pacific Northwest Wild Sockeye
Photo By Amy Kumler
Guided by stringent criteria developed with the Wild Fish Conservancy, we sourced this limited-supply sockeye from an epic run through the waters off Lummi Island, Washington.
The premium-grade fish were caught using reef nets, a selective-fishing technique that results in little to no bycatch and preserves the quality of the fish.
Wild Pink Salmon
Photo By Amy Kumler
Reef netting is an ancient selective-fishing method developed by the native peoples of the Salish Sea.
The nets allow us to harvest thriving wild pink salmon without harming depressed stocks of Chinook and coho salmon.
Here’s how it works: Large nets are suspended between two anchored boats, with lead lines extending down tide and outward. Migrating salmon are fooled by the lead lines into thinking they are traveling over a reef (hence the name) and must ascend toward the surface. As they approach the waiting net, spotters in 20-foot towers identify the species and, if the fish are indeed the target species, prepare to engage the net. When the fish enter the net, solar-powered winches lift the edges, trapping the fish inside.
The Power of Place
What is a place-based fishery? It’s a fishery that works with the knowledge that every run, or “stock,” of wild salmon has evolved to return to specific watersheds. While most industrial salmon harvest happens on the open ocean, where many different stocks mix and fishermen can’t know where the fish they catch came from, place-based fisheries are conducted in or near rivers of origin. Through a combination of timing and technique, place-based fisheries let us responsibly target wild salmon populations that can sustain harvest, while minimizing or eliminating harm to less abundant stocks.
All Provisions salmon is sourced from place-based fisheries. Our Wild Sockeye Salmon are harvested near the mouths of Alaska’s Situk river and rivers in Cook Inlet. Our Wild Pink Salmon and premium PNW Wild Sockeye Salmon come from the Fraser River migration corridor off Lummi Island, Washington.
Salmon Sourcing Criteria
All Provisions salmon must be harvested from:
- wild, self-sustaining populations rather than hatchery stocks or net-pen fish farms.
- place-based fisheries where sound science can assess fish population status and needs.
- specific, scientifically identified populations that can sustain harvest.
- fisheries that use technique, location or timing to minimize bycatch.
Preference will be given to:
- selective-harvest techniques that allow release of bycatch with minimal harm.
- fisheries that maximize eating quality through careful, individual handling of fish.
- fisheries that support ecological health and health of human communities.
- passive and near-shore fisheries that minimize carbon footprint.
Finally, all Provisions salmon will be marketed with full transparency, including packaging that names species, harvest location and type of gear used.
Salmon Conservation
Strange as it may sound, we believe harvesting and eating wild salmon in the right numbers, from the right places, can actually help save them.
The Soul Who Swims
I wonder if a vision of her life is passing before her as she lies here with that one unblinking eye staring up at the enormous trees overhead and the sunlit sky beyond them.
Salmon Dreams
At night I dream of salmon gliding through heavy seas, turning toward a faint scent of their birth rivers; in brackish bays feeling the pull of lunar motion and a taste of sweet...
The Secretly Sexy Organism That Might Just Save the Planet
When you write about sustainability and seafood, you have to revisit your definition of sexy.
What are Salmon For?
And essay from biologist, activist and co-founder of the Wild Fish Conservancy, Bill McMillan.
The Simple Customs of Salmon Nation
Liz Woody writes about how salmon were the first to teach us of wealth.
Regenerative Ocean Farming: The (Least) Deadliest Catch
Bren Smith's article talks about the power of restorative ocean farming and delicious food grown for both people and the planet.
A Natural History of Pacific Salmon
Jim Lichatowich is a fishery biologist and has spent the last 30 years working on Pacific salmon conservation.
