By Rabbi Yair Hoffman

The Nine Days are approaching and soon the menus will change.  More fish will be served because of the prohibition of eating meat during this time.  Some of the Torah shiurim will also be directed toward these areas of halacha.  So, let’s discuss salmon.

What halachic discussions could one talk about regarding salmon?  Can an entire shiur (or article) be devoted to this one topic?  Believe it or not, the answer is “yes.”  Join us for a brief four part look at salmon.

STAR K VERSUS THE OU

The first topic of discussion can be the little-known debate between the Orthodox Union and the Star K about the kashrus of farmed salmon that are packed in fillets without any skin.  Generally speaking, kosher fish are identified by having fins and scales. As long as the scales fit the halachic definition of a scale – they can be identified as kosher solely on the basis of the presence of these scales (See SA YD 83:1).

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RAV MOSHE’S RULING

Rav Moshe Feinstein zatzal had ruled that salmon’s uniquely colored pink flesh would also constitute a siman muvhak a clear and precise sign that it is kosher (as only salmon and trout have pink or reddish flesh). Based upon this, there would be no need to actually examine the skin for scales or scale marks.  The ruling was conveyed to Rav Belsky zatzal by Rav Nota Greenblatt zt”l, one of Rav Moshe’s leading talmidim.

IT’S NOT PINK

Subsequently, however, it was discovered that the true flesh color of salmon is not naturally pink.  Rather, it is actually white.  What then makes salmon flesh pink?

Salmon consume an anti-oxidant called, “Astaxanthin” – a carotenoid pigment that occurs in microalgae, krill, plankton, and shrimp, and among other sea creatures.  For farmed salmon, the Astaxanthin is added to the feed in one of two ways:

• They add crushed lobsters to the feed.
• They add Astaxanthin artificially. There are federal guidelines as to how to go about adding it and these guidelines forbid adding more than 72 grams per ton (See FDA Title 21 Sec. 73.35 (c).)

DOES RAV MOSHE’S RULING STILL APPLY?

The question arises as to whether the ruling of Rav Moshe zatzal would still apply to the farmed salmon with the added-in artificial astaxanthin.  Rav Belsky zatzal ruled that the finances involved in creating such an infrastructure would also create a “siman muvhak.”  Rav Heinemann, lehavdil bain chaim l’chaim, however, ruled stringently.  On account of this, the Star K does not allow Costco fillet salmon at their catered events.

This author asked Rav Heinemann to what extent he was machmir.  Was there a requirement, say, to kasher the oven as well – as would be the case with a non-kosher fish?  Rav Heinemann ruled that there was no need to kasher the oven.

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MISSING ITS TEEN AGE YEARS

The second topic under discussion deals with something that is about to come to market.  It was supposed to come to market two years ago, but the pandemic derailed it.  Generally speaking, farmed salmon is sold when it reaches 12 to 18 pounds in size.  It takes 36 months for the salmon to get to this size.

There is a company, however, called AquaBounty which has succeeded in adding different DNA to the salmon which will make it mature much faster.  With the newly introduced DNA from other aquatic creatures, it only takes 18 months for the salmon to mature to the necessary size.

The potential problem is that some of the genetic material that is introduced is from a non-kosher aquatic creature called an Ocean Pout. Some of the other material is from the Chinook salmon. An ocean pout is decidedly not kosher, as its scales are not halachically considered kaskesses.  The DNA of the ocean pout allows for the “pause switch” on the growth hormone from the Chinook material to stay on.  The question is whether this is considered “shailah-free” or not.  When this author originally brought up the topic of the Ocean Pout DNA to Poskim, the Poskim said it would be permitted notwithstanding the DNA inserted.  Last October, an employee at AquaFresh raised some problems with the manner of its production.

THE THIRD TOPIC

The third topic involves the kashrus of anisakis worms found in the flesh of Salmon.  The sugya is found in the Gemorah in Chulin 67b.  The underlying question is how we understand the ruling of the Mechaber (YD 84:16) when he states that if the worms are found in the gut – it is not kosher and if in the flesh, it is kosher.

Was this an across-the-board statement?  Or do we say that when there is indication that the worms may have migrated from the gut, and the leniency found in Shulchan Aruch does not apply?  This author has video footage of the worms migrating from the gut into the flesh.  When this question was posed to Rav Elyashiv zatzal, he ruled specifically that the Mechaber was not referring to such a situation, and it would be prohibited to consume the salmon.  Rabbi Falk z”l from England ruled that it was permitted.

THE FOURTH TOPIC

For years, researchers have been wondering why there are melanin spots or dark spots in salmon fillets.  Some observant Jews were concerned that these spots may be remnants of some sort of bug or worm.  It was recently discovered by a company called Nofima and research done at the Norwegian University of Life Science (NMBU) that the causes of these spots are actually rib fractures.

In both freshwater smolt and wild salmon, there was an average of four rib defects per fish. After transfer to sea, the number had increased to 10 defects per fish. Dark melanin spots in fillets are the most common quality problem in farmed salmon. Most spots are found in the fillet near the head and abdomen. The increase occurred during the final freshwater period and the first months at sea, and remained stable until slaughter.  This does not present a Kashrus problem.

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The author can be reached at [email protected]

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