More than taste test required for salmon

It is reported that about 30 percent of the salmon in the Chinese market is in fact rainbow trout, which is a species of salmonid living in cold fresh water. Beijing Youth Daily comments:

The fish sellers have on purpose kept consumers in the dark, profiting from the price gap between the two kinds of fish. Even after the media exposed the fish dealers' trick, those selling rainbow trout as salmon simply call the fish "fresh water salmon".

However, none of the food safety, agricultural or commerce administrative departments has yet put a stop to the wrongdoings.

It is ridiculous that the fake salmon dealers are still selling the rainbow trout as salmon at high prices. They defend themselves by saying the "fresh water salmon" tastes the same and experience shows it is safe to eat raw, despite the parasites in the rainbow trout making it dangerous to eat uncooked.

The then Agricultural Ministry vowed to accelerate the construction of a quality tracing system for agricultural produces last year, according to which such swindling would be eliminated. The case of the salmon that is not salmon should serve as a reminder to the new Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Affairs that they should brook no delay in establishing the system.

Hopefully, the authorities can take immediate actions to rectify the order of the salmon market, and correct the wrongdoings of the fake salmon sellers as soon as possible. That the fake salmon has not evolved into a threat to public health does not mean it is not an issue of food safety that must be addressed.