It Appears That Canned Fish Is Having Its Moment, but Is It Actually Beneficial to Your Health?

During the pandemic lockdown, several of us learned to cook using pantry basics and produce beautiful sourdough bread. For protein and omega-3, we ate a lot of canned salmon.

Tinned seafood is more popular than ever, even if buying fresh fish is easier now. Grand View anticipated that the worldwide canned seafood industry would rise 6% yearly over the next seven years and reach $50.5 billion by 2030.

Restaurants are following suit. Saltie Girl, with locations in London, Boston, and Los Angeles, serves over 100 canned fish dishes, from mussels in pickled sauce to baby eels in olive oil.

Canned fish, however trendy, has been around for millennia and was a need before home refrigerators and fresh food were readily available. Is canned seafood healthy today? If so, which ones should we consume and avoid? This covers everything.

Tinned seafood is healthy.

Although tinned fish is healthy, "Canned fish is a convenient and affordable source of protein, and depending on the type of fish can also be a great source of omega-3 fatty acids and other essential nutrients," health benefits vary depending on processing and preparation methods (more on that later).

Tinned fish is saltier than fresh seafood. If you're managing your salt consumption, choose lower-salt canned or fresh fish.

It's Sustainable.

Overfishing is threatening a third of the world's fisheries. Since sustainable seafood is more essential than ever, purchasing canned fish is straightforward if you read labels.

Choose tinned fish that is certified sustainable and look for logos like the Marine Stewardship Council logo to ensure fisheries are managed to environmentally sustainable and legal harvest levels, minimise bycatch of non-target or endangered species, and minimise impacts on wider marine eco-systems.Second, choose Marine Stewardship Council Good Fish Guide-listed fish. Most pelagic (shoaling) species including sardines, mackerel, pilchards, and anchovies are more sustainable than tuna and salmon.

Best Tinned Seafood for Health and the Environment

There's not much difference between fine canned fish from fashionable restaurants and grocery store fish when it comes to choosing it out. Thankfully, grocery store items are cheaper.

But what should you look for when you browse the grocery store's various tins (not just tuna)? ““Many canned foods are high in sodium, so make sure you look at labels and avoid any products with added salt and/or those that have more than 140 grammes of sodium per serving,” I advise selecting canned fish packed in water or olive oil.

Wild-caught brands are healthier and better for the environment. My preferred low-sodium brands are Safe Catch, Wild Planet, and Bumble Bee.

The majority of canned salmon in the U.S. comes from Alaska, which is great because Alaska salmon is guaranteed to be wild-caught and sustainable. It's also an excellent source of omega-3 fatty acids, calcium, and vitamin D, which is especially important because many of us don't get enough of these nutrients.

When it comes to the specific kinds of fish that will offer you the most bang for your buck in terms of their nutritional value, the answer relies entirely on the nutrients that you want to consume in large quantities. Omega-3 fatty acids may be found in abundance in salmon, mackerel, and sardines, whereas zinc can be found in abundance in oysters and clams. Octopus is an excellent source of vitamin A, whereas cod is an excellent provider of vitamin B12 and selenium,"

You may choose canned shellfish such as mussels, oysters, and clams if you are concerned about sustainability. This is an alternative to looking for brands that are fished in the wild and reading product labels. They also remove more nitrogen and phosphorus from the ecosystem than they release, safeguarding seas against eutrophication (the process of becoming excessively abundant with nitrogen and phosphorus). "These fish have lower average greenhouse gas emissions and use less water and land than other forms of seafood,"

Cans of fish may be enjoyed in a variety of inventive and delectable ways.

To cut a long tale short, canned fish is fantastic for your health, and there are even certain kinds that aren't terrible for the environment. But apart from emptying a can of tuna into a bowl and combining it with an absurd quantity of mayonnaise, what are some other ways that you may enjoy the canned fish that you just purchased from the supermarket?

I also prefer adding sardines on whole wheat sourdough toast with goat cheese, arugula, and sun-dried tomatoes. This is one of my favourite ways to enjoy canned fish. One of my favourite ways to enjoy canned fish is by adding anchovies to salad dressing, similar to Caesar salad dressing. When I need a fast meal throughout the week, I make salmon burgers using canned salmon. "

You may have a protein-packed meal by using canned fish in salads and spaghetti, making fish cakes with it, or adding it on toast for a snack.

Is there any other choice? Turn the can upside down, take a fork, and start digging in. Because of its widespread popularity and high nutritious content, you really can't go wrong with this option.