It is neither wild nor farmed, it is the Upstream smoked salmon

Our salmon is different from the others, it is unique and incomparable because it comes from the Non-intensive Control System, an upstream method. Let's talk about it.

Have you ever heard of the Non-intensive Control System? Searching, you will find only Upstream sources. It's our method, what differentiates us from others, it's the exception, and we talk about it because - in our sector - the lack of information and common opinions determine misleading perceptions of quality.

Upstream smoked salmon comes from farms with a Non-intensive Control System.

Breeding, a word that clashes in a context that is commendable. Can a method applied to farmed salmon be defined as unique?

Yes, because ours is a non-intensive process, that is natural and sustainable. It is the antithesis of classical breeding, it is different and must be told to counter the mistrust that arises from not knowing or knowing only one side of the story and that generates a misinterpretation of what is actually far away and not even remotely comparable to what it seems. 

It is our Non-intensive Control System, thanks to which the salmon can live in its natural ecosystem, in clear and clean waters, with one of the strictest aquaculture veterinary regulatory regimes in the world.

Wild? Farmed? No, just Non-Intensive

Upstream salmon is the wild Atlantic salmon that leaves the rivers of Europe and travels through the North Seas, where it breeds before returning to the rivers to spawn. 

This is very important: our salmon is strong, muscular and constantly moving. We let it thrive in its natural habitat, in open and very oxygenated waters that allow the fish a better quality of life than that which can be guaranteed by an almost still sea.

It has less fat because the feeding of Upstream salmon is controlled, without antibiotics or hormones, so that it acquires only lean mass. Its diet, defined by weight, includes flour, fish oil, minerals, fiber and vitamins, marine raw materials and elements of vegetable origin that guarantee a healthy, stable and sustainable diet. 

Nutrition and movement are the pillars of our Non-intensive Method, inspired by the practice of extensive aquaculture, which exploits only the resources of the environment, reducing human intervention to a minimum. It is the best example of interaction between human activity and environmental conservation.

We preserve this synergy, without compromise at any point in the chain: the anti-stress treatment of Upstream salmon begins in the open sea and ends during harvesting and processing.

The combination between freedom of movement and a programmed diet is perfect and determines indisputable lightness and healthiness, superior to those generically attributed to wild salmon. Because even wild salmon, to which is associated the highest quality in common ideology, there are often unknown nuances. 

Wild salmon

Wild salmon can be river or sea salmon. 

The former is the fish caught in the traditional way in freshwater, where the salmon returns to spawn and ends its life cycle; it is sport fishing and it is very difficult to find these genuine  “tired” specimens on the market. Because when the salmon goes up against the tide it uses up a lot of energy, accumulating fatigue especially from a physical point of view.

The wild sea salmon can be distinguished among different species according to its place of origin and size. It is fished in the ocean with nets or trollers before it returns to the rivers. Before facing the current the fish is in exemplary physical condition. There is no doubt that wild salmon is naturally very good. 

With the Non-intensive Method we add the control of the feeding and the guarantee that the following process, from harvesting to processing, is also carried out in respect of the animal and the final consumer.

Then, we continue the path in the Upstream chain.

Fishing, regulations and non intensive processing

The fish is caught gently, without trauma, so that it can continue to move easily.

At this point the fish route ends; ours continues.

Because at each cycle everything starts from scratch. It is therefore essential that after the breeding of every single generation of salmon, the production site is completely regenerated through an all-in all-out strategy. This means that all equipment is dismantled, cleaned and checked by the food and veterinary agency. We do all this with a precise purpose: to protect our salmon from the possible spread of disease and not to alter the balance of the natural-ecological system.

The meticulous treatment continues during the processing phase.

The Non-intensive Control System imposes strict rules, to be respected, which have reshaped the usual way of doing by the Danish specialists. It is in Denmark, in fact, that our salmon is processed, from filleting to marinating and smoking, always respecting our method.

We have taught it to our people who already have a deep knowledge of the subject; the fusion between the experience of expert hands that have lived in contact with salmon for generations and our protocols, gives birth to something unique and special. Marinating takes place in separate phases, strictly with little salt and sugar always alternating; for smoking we use beech wood from the Parma Apennines, instead of the heavy woods of Northern Europe. These are not small details, they are important refinements because they are necessary to obtain an elegant, soft, fresh and very light salmon, but above all different.

This is what we want to emphasize; Upstream salmon is unique. 

Wild  salmon is good and it is not necessarily the case that even the farmed salmon may not be good in some cases; but ours is Upstream, the only one obtained with the Non-Intensive Control Method, with very high quality standards. The extremely exclusive production cycle restricts its production that determines rather low yields and places the final product in a high end of the market. 

A limit? No, this is the value of Upstream smoked salmon.