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Many Swiss households eat fish on the Christmas holidays. More and more of it comes from Swiss production. This is despite the fact that it costs up to a third more than fish from abroad. But are Swiss salmon, whitefish or shrimp really better, as many believe?
Salmon, perch, whitefish, pikeperch – fish is becoming increasingly popular in Switzerland. Consumption has risen by 60 percent in the last quarter of a century, to just under nine kilos per capita. And more and more of it comes from Switzerland, a total of around 530 tons per year.
He understands that many people buy locally produced fish, says Thomas Janssens, an agronomist at the Bern University of Applied Sciences and an expert in aquaculture. Because: “Local Swiss fish production is more sustainable than imported fish.”
Local Swiss fish production is more sustainable than imported fish.
The independent environmental manager Urs Baumgartner, who has dealt intensively with fish farms all over the world, doubts that. Just because a fish is produced in Switzerland does not automatically mean it is more sustainable than fish from abroad. He explains that many consumers believed this with Swiss chauvinism. “That we have confidence in the institutions and believe that our laws are better than others anyway, although we don’t even know it.”
In a study for the University of Bern, Baumgartner comes to the conclusion that fish from Swiss aquaculture in particular – around half of Swiss fish production – is not produced sustainably at all. He lists two points:
Point 1: High energy consumption
“The systems are very energy-intensive,” says Baumgartner. The indoor facilities for Swiss shrimp would have to be constantly heated. Additional energy that is found in the tropical countries of origin of the shrimp not need, says Baumgartner.
That’s right, says agronomist Janssens from Bern University of Applied Sciences. But the animal welfare rules are stricter here. In addition, more and more Swiss (aquaculture) fish are being produced in sustainable recycling systems. «Circulatory systems mean checking the entire environment and cleaning the water. So it needs less water. ” But still a lot of energy. Solutions are still needed for this. This is one of the reasons why a competence center for aquaculture is currently being set up at the Bern University of Applied Sciences – under the direction of the Belgian-born Thomas Janssens.
Point 2: the feed
Popular food fish such as salmon, trout, perch or whitefish are carnivores, i.e. carnivorous predatory fish. In the wild they lived on fish, in breeding fishflour. However, a lot of wild fish are used to produce fish meal, says the environmental expert. According to estimates, a total of 2800 tons of wild catch per year – for the 1600 tons of fish from Swiss aquaculture. “In this way, a farm can exacerbate the problem of overfishing.”
Aquaculture expert Janssens does not deny that. “The weak point in aquaculture is still the fish meal.” But there are also solutions for this: “One solution would be insect or plant meal. Or by-products from the meat industry, such as poultry meal. “
However, fishmeal is the cheapest solution so far. It just takes time to develop alternatives. The industry is still young. But Janssens expects it will likely grow quickly. Because the wild fish population in Switzerland has been declining for years. “If the consumer wants to eat Swiss fish, this difference certainly comes from aquaculture.”
But it is only when the consumer demands more sustainability that the pressure on the wasteland also increases to find more sustainable solutions for farmed fish such as salmon, whitefish or perch.