fresh and frozen fish, but they keep none in storage for long. With an airport nearby, they can fly

fresh fish in from anywhere in the world within one to three days. Fresh orange roughy caught in

New Zealand yesterday morning can be in Sacramento, California, by this morning and in the

fish market or restaurant kitchen by noon. If you buy it within the next few hours, that's a truly

fresh fish. If it is still in storage for a week, even under ideal conditions, it loses its freshness but

it is still a good fish. If few people order orange roughy at the restaurant or buy it at the fish

counter this week, it goes on special next week, no longer fresh in the best sense of the word.

The pieces that still didn’t sell by then the seafood department clerk freezes (or re-freezes), and

they are no longer good choice for anyone. By this time, only the price is right.

Sea ranching and fish farming encourage today's love affair with seafood. Growing

seafood in a controlled environment is called aquaculture, a wetter version of agriculture. In the

mid-1980s it produced less than 10 percent of the total fish and shellfish consumed worldwide,

but by the mid-1990s, they farmed 15 percent of our seafood. In the eastern part of Asia, where

aquaculture is an ancient practice, they raise about 85 percent of the total catch. Fish farming is

highly efficient—at a trout farm fish gain between 1.5 and 2 pounds (700 to 900 g) for every

pound (half kilo) of high-quality fish food. At a catfish farm fish are able to gain an amazing 1.1

pounds (500 g) for every pound (450 g) of fish food. Not much waste in there. The excess 0.1

pound (45 g) must be for energy.

TASTINGS. Farmed fish production

Using a natural environment and supplementing food for the free-swimming fish

can produce 80 to 400 pounds (36 to 180 kg) of fish per acre. But intensive fish

farming in an all-artificial environment can produce a staggering 160,000 to 1.6

million pounds (72,600 to 726,000 kg) an acre. Introducing oxygen into the water

increases yield even more. A fish hatchery in Northern California, for instance,

raises 40,000 trout in each of the octagonal pools mere 40 feet (12 m) in diameter

with added liquid oxygen from a tank. Circulating water keeps the trout gently

swimming against the current (like being on a treadmill) to build firm and solid

muscle that guarantee excellent quality fish.

Seafood Nutrition

All seafood is high in protein but not quite as high as poultry or red meat. On the average,

9 percent of seafood is protein. Shellfish meat contains a little less protein, with an average of

6 percent. In a serving size of 4 ounces (110 g), this translates to 22 grams of protein for fish

and 18 grams of protein for shellfish. Seafood is also very high in minerals and vitamins. It

contains a little less cholesterol than meat or chicken. The average fish has about the same

amount of cholesterol as a lean piece of beef or a skinless chicken breast. A serving of 4 ounces

(110 g) of seafood only contains between 50 and 80 milligrams of cholesterol. If you're watching

your cholesterol intake, be aware of these exceptions (all given for 4-ounce or 110 g servings):

Lobster

Crayfish

Shrimp

Squid

106 mg

157 mg

173 mg

263 mg

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