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Seafood Watch - Seafood Guide

Trout, Lake

New York State Dept. of Environmental Conservation
SEAFOODRATINGMARKET NAMESWHERE CAUGHTHOW CAUGHT
Lake Trout Good Alternative: These are good alternatives to the best choices column. There are some concerns with how they are fished or farmed – or with the health of their habitats due to other human impacts. Laker, Namaycush, Togue, Mackinaw, Char, Salmon Trout Lake Superior Wild-caught
Lake Trout Avoid: Avoid these products for now. These fish come from sources that are overfished or fished or farmed in ways that harm the environment. Laker, Namaycush, Togue, Mackinaw, Char, Salmon Trout Lake Huron, Lake Michigan Wild-caught
Rainbow Trout Best Choice: These fish are abundant, well managed and fished or farmed in environmentally friendly ways. Golden Trout U.S. Farmed


Lake Trout

Lake trout in the Great Lakes has been impacted by overfishing and the introduction of non-native species. Lake Superior is the only Great Lake where management is having any impact.

Consumer Note

Lake trout is available year-round and may be marketed fresh, frozen or smoked.

Health Alert

Environmental Defense Fund has issued a consumption advisory for lake trout due to high levels of PCBs.

Summary

Lake trout is a long-lived predator that is distributed in lakes throughout North America.

Lake trout habitat and spawning areas have been relatively undisturbed in the Great Lakes. However, the introduction of non-native species, which either prey on the lake trout itself or compete with the trout for their preferred diet, has seriously hampered their recovery.

Overfishing in the mid 1900s also reduced lake trout populations in the Great Lakes. The combined impacts of overfishing and introduced species caused a serious decline in all populations and the complete disappearance of lake trout from some of the Great Lakes.

Management agencies in the Great Lakes have made restoring lake trout populations a priority. However, success has been limited and Lake Superior is the only Great Lake where lake trout is reproducing sufficiently to maintain a stable population.

We recommend Lake Superior as a "Good Alternative," while lake trout from Lake Huron and Lake Michigan is rated as "Avoid."


Scientific Reports About Our Ratings
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How fish are caught or farmed makes a difference. Fishing boat

 
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