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Seafood Watch - Seafood Guide

Catfish

Courtesy of U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service/Duane Raver

SEAFOOD	RATING	MARKET NAMES	WHERE CAUGHT	HOW CAUGHT
Catfish		Channel Catfish	U.S.	Farmed

Catfish, U.S. Farmed

U.S. farmed catfish is a "Best Choice" because it’s farmed in an ecologically responsible manner.

Consumer Note

We recommend you look for the country-of-origin label to ensure you’re purchasing U.S. farm-raised catfish

instead of imported catfish, like basa and swai, which are sometimes also sold simply as “catfish.”

Summary

A specialty of the southeastern U.S., channel catfish is now one of the most commonly farmed fish in the U.S., generating the largest volume and revenue of all farmed seafood. As a result, catfish has become one of America's most popular seafood items.

Raised in closed, inland ponds using recirculated fresh water and fed a mostly vegetarian diet of soybeans, corn and rice, U.S. farmed catfish is considered to be one of the most sustainable fish species available. Closed, inland ponds dramatically reduce the risk of farmed fish escaping and spreading disease to native wild populations. Their primarily vegetarian diet, with extremely low levels of fishmeal, reduces the number of wild fish caught.

Scientific Reports About Our Ratings

U.S. Farmed Catfish Seafood Watch Report
Aquaculture Fact Cards

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How fish are caught or farmed makes a difference.

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