State’s salmon to food bank
Post-spawn salmon from the California Fish and Game Department program to replenish fisheries are headed for the freezers of needy Indian families.
As part of the industrial-style management of salmon, the state intercepts migrating fish in fall and winter and collects eggs and sperm to rear new fish for release to streams. Adult salmon die soon after spawning, but now they won’t go to waste.
Officials provided more than 500,000 pounds of fish to 40 Northern California tribes over the last two years. American Canadian Fisheries in Washington state processes the meat and sells leftover fish parts as pet food or fertilizer. State officials say there is no charge to anyone for the fish processing or distribution to food banks. Donations under this year’s program end this month.
-- Leslie Carlson
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