Condition Factor, Fat Content and Flavour of Farmed and Wild Salmon

Tests on 882 salmon (587 farmed and 295 wild) indicated that the condition factor (CF) is a useful and easily-measured quality index for salmon, especially when combined with data for skin colour.and fat content. Wild salmon were better conditioned than farmed, and CF values of >0.90 are desirable for gutted salmon (wild and farmed) and > 0.96 and >0.98 for gut-in wild and farmed fish, respectively. Wild salmon had a slightly lower mean fat content than farmed (12.3 vs 12.5%) but showed more variation in fat content. Tests on three spot samples indicated that taste panels were unable to detect a statistically significant flavour difference between farmed and wild salmon. Comprehensive details of the procedures and results are given below.