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Catfish

(U.S. Farmed)

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

Market Names:
Channel Catfish

Consumer Notes:
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, Pangasius 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.

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