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Getbig Main Boards => Gossip & Opinions => Topic started by: Al Doggity on April 10, 2018, 10:26:53 AM

Title: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 10, 2018, 10:26:53 AM
Been on a mostly vegetarian/ pescatarian type diet for past few months. In previous years, I just avoided tilapia because of all the controversies surrounding it (I am fine with the taste). With whole foods new prices, their "responsibly raised" tilapia is actually comparable to canned albacore tuna now, so I've just been picking it up a few times a week.

I was at another grocery store over the weekend and was surprised at how much cheaper asian raised tilapia is. It has a terrible reputation, but even in nyc it was less than $5/lb. That is cheaper than decent canned tuna and also cheaper than medium quality ground beef at most places. There are a lot of strong opinions about asian raised fish. I've been doing some research, and I think I might be leaning into the camp that thinks it's probably not that bad.

What's your thoughts, getblurg? Am I an idiot? Probably so, but specifically, in regards to my thoughts on ingesting poison chinese fish?
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: nativeMUSCLE on April 10, 2018, 10:51:07 AM
Rutkowski orange roughy shits FTW
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Las Vegas on April 10, 2018, 10:53:04 AM
Not to be trusted.  Very low standards.  Grabbing cash is the only thing a Chinese businessperson can be reliably counted upon to do.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: dan18 on April 10, 2018, 11:08:27 AM
Been on a mostly vegetarian/ pescatarian type diet for past few months. In previous years, I just avoided tilapia because of all the controversies surrounding it (I am fine with the taste). With whole foods new prices, their "responsibly raised" tilapia is actually comparable to canned albacore tuna now, so I've just been picking it up a few times a week.

I was at another grocery store over the weekend and was surprised at how much cheaper asian raised tilapia is. It has a terrible reputation, but even in nyc it was less than $5/lb. That is cheaper than decent canned tuna and also cheaper than medium quality ground beef at most places. There are a lot of strong opinions about asian raised fish. I've been doing some research, and I think I might be leaning into the camp that thinks it's probably not that bad.

What's your thoughts, getblurg? Am I an idiot? Probably so, but specifically, in regards to my thoughts on ingesting poison chinese fish?
cheap fish I like trout cleaned of its bones or salmon and I love sword fish
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Las Vegas on April 10, 2018, 11:08:52 AM
why don't you stick safe reliable American food like clorinated chicken, hormone treated beef or genetically modified corn?

True.  Especially when you know the Chinese can outdo everyone (even us) in producing questionable food.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Las Vegas on April 10, 2018, 11:10:54 AM
cheap fish I like trout cleaned of its bones or salmon and I love sword fish

Okay.  10-4, understood, but a big No Homo on that.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: dan18 on April 10, 2018, 11:36:24 AM
Okay.  10-4, understood, but a big No Homo on that.
Their is no reason for a ( NO HOMO ) on that post if I said I like bone in then yes.. ;D
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 10, 2018, 11:47:11 AM
why don't you stick safe reliable American food like clorinated chicken, hormone treated beef or genetically modified corn?

Well, yes, this is was the point of my post. There's so much other "hazardous stuff" in the typical American diet, when you look at it rationally maybe farmed tilapia from overseas isn't really comparatively that bad?  ???
I dont believe the Tilapia is exclusive to China
Is it realy the case that the tilapia consumed in the US comes from China or just associated with chinese restaurants?
As for them outdoing everybody else in questionable food they are a quarter of the worlds population.
If the US has good effective food safety regulations there should be little problem 


A huge amount of fish in America comes from asian countries. Whole foods makes a big deal about certain fish being sourced from America. Tilapia grows fast and is a huge vietnamese export.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Las Vegas on April 10, 2018, 12:10:45 PM
I dont believe the Tilapia is exclusive to China
Is it realy the case that the tilapia consumed in the US comes from China or just associated with chinese restaurants?
As for them outdoing everybody else in questionable food they are a quarter of the worlds population.
If the US has good effective food safety regulations there should be little problem 


Some does, yes.  The information's available to the consumer.  If it's a bag of fish, it'll be printed on that bag.

And yes, Vietnamese are producers as well - but IDK their standards.  We produce, too, and probably have better standards than many (but not all) places.  Chinese business, though, has shown itself (time and again) to be all about the cash grab.  Whether it's manufacturing a product to simply look like what the consumer's buying, but in effect is actually junk waiting to be immediately junked, or whether it's farmed product: IMO, it belongs in China and not here.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Las Vegas on April 10, 2018, 12:13:13 PM
Their is no reason for a ( NO HOMO ) on that post if I said I like bone in then yes.. ;D

;D True, you cancelled out the "sword" part nicely.  You're right. ;D
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Go 4 It on April 10, 2018, 12:35:06 PM
I stay away from that stuff, any farm raised fish (which is the tilapia from Walmart) the fats you are getting from that fish is omega 6 not omega 3, because those fish aren't eating algae and their natural diet, so you're better off eating chicken and it's cheaper, and just go buy a good quality fish oil and supplement with that everyday.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: funk51 on April 10, 2018, 12:38:52 PM
tilapia aka garbage disposal of the sea
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Las Vegas on April 10, 2018, 12:42:25 PM
I stay away from that stuff, any farm raised fish (which is the tilapia from Walmart) the fats you are getting from that fish is omega 6 not omega 3, because those fish aren't eating algae and their natural diet, so you're better off eating chicken and it's cheaper, and just go buy a good quality fish oil and supplement with that everyday.

If that's true, then not a bad idea.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 10, 2018, 01:05:37 PM
I stay away from that stuff, any farm raised fish (which is the tilapia from Walmart) the fats you are getting from that fish is omega 6 not omega 3, because those fish aren't eating algae and their natural diet, so you're better off eating chicken and it's cheaper, and just go buy a good quality fish oil and supplement with that everyday.

Actually one of the things I looked into over the weekend and one of the reasons I started this thread. A lot of scientists don't believe that Omega 6s have the risk factors that were often associated with them. There was even a study that attributed the increase of Omega 6s in the american diet to a decrease in heart disease death since the 1960s. Overall, I think this is the type of nitpicking science that can change on a year-by-year, study-by-study basis so I consider it a draw. I don't think one is significantly worse or better.

A lot of the asian farmed fish is very cheap. In terms of price, if you're primary concern was omega imbalances, it wouldn't make less sense to supplement your fish with fish oil.

Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 10, 2018, 01:08:19 PM
tilapia aka garbage disposal of the sea

Here's the thing; we use compost in commercial farming. Tons of seafood are bottom feeders. Is tilapia really any more disgusting in that regard?
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: BB on April 10, 2018, 01:11:18 PM
After years of revamping their aquaculture systems, Chinese/Asian Tilapia usually ranks as barely passable by various sea food ranking organizations. That being said, China controls about 40% of the market, so if you buy cheap fish you'll probably be using their products at some point.

The rankings on Tilapia usually go - American, South American, Mexico/Central American, Asia (with the exception of Indonesia) in terms of quality. For cheaper Tilapia and general seafood, Costco has a good reputation. They, and a few others source from - www.regalsprings.com , which seems to be very respected in the industry.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: mphgrove on April 10, 2018, 01:13:53 PM
I think tilapia has totally blah taste so it’s a moot point for me. But I study fish extensively so here’s the summary:

US raised tilapia excellent bodybuilding lean whitefish and VERY LOW toxins
Tilapia raised outside US: risk of VERY HIGH toxins. I am sure there are exceptions, but how would you ever know, even with Whole Foods as retailer.

I have a friend who has visited tilapia farms in Vietnam. Gross is her report
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Go 4 It on April 10, 2018, 01:33:12 PM
Actually one of the things I looked into over the weekend and one of the reasons I started this thread. A lot of scientists don't believe that Omega 6s have the risk factors that were often associated with them. There was even a study that attributed the increase of Omega 6s in the american diet to a decrease in heart disease death since the 1960s. Overall, I think this is the type of nitpicking science that can change on a year-by-year, study-by-study basis so I consider it a draw. I don't think one is significantly worse or better.

A lot of the asian farmed fish is very cheap. In terms of price, if you're primary concern was omega imbalances, it wouldn't make less sense to supplement your fish with fish oil.


My goal when eating fish is to get omega 3's or else why would you eat it? Especially tilapia, farm raised fish have little to no omega 3's, so why not just eat chicken or turkey? To me chicken or turkey taste better and are cheaper. If you want to buy wild caught fish they are damn expensive, so at the end of the day, you're better off eating chicken, beef, turkey, eggs, and supplementing with fish oil.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: mphgrove on April 10, 2018, 02:39:59 PM
My goal when eating fish is to get omega 3's or else why would you eat it? Especially tilapia, farm raised fish have little to no omega 3's, so why not just eat chicken or turkey? To me chicken or turkey taste better and are cheaper. If you want to buy wild caught fish they are damn expensive, so at the end of the day, you're better off eating chicken, beef, turkey, eggs, and supplementing with fish oil.

Difference between pre-contest and general health during off season. Yes, the fish pre-contest needs to be the ones without the omegas so I agree with your point EXCEPT I get sick of just chicken and turkey so I weave in the generally lower toxin low fat whitefish for taste (cod, pollack, whiting, US tilapia, scallops which are expensive though). Off season is a whole different story: lots of high omega fish is great: sardines, herring, Arctic char, rainbow trout, wild salmon. These are extremely good for muscle building, very healthy, generally low toxins and very rich taste. Much better than fish oil pills.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Primemuscle on April 10, 2018, 02:50:41 PM
why don't you stick safe reliable American food like clorinated chicken, hormone treated beef or genetically modified corn?

Good point.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Taffin on April 10, 2018, 03:11:49 PM
I think tilapia has totally blah taste so it’s a moot point for me. But I study fish extensively so here’s the summary:

US raised tilapia excellent bodybuilding lean whitefish and VERY LOW toxins
Tilapia raised outside US: risk of VERY HIGH toxins. I am sure there are exceptions, but how would you ever know, even with Whole Foods as retailer.

I have a friend who has visited tilapia farms in Vietnam. Gross is her report

Interesting - do you study fish professionally?

What do you mean when you say 'toxins' please?

And can you define 'VERY HIGH' - on what scale?  Measured by who?  Is there an ACCEPTABLE level of 'toxins'..?

Thanks in advance...
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Montague on April 10, 2018, 03:18:37 PM
cheap fish I like trout cleaned of its bones or salmon and I love sword fish


Be careful with consumption of too much sword fish.

It's got some of the highest toxin amounts of the large predatory fish.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Tapeworm on April 10, 2018, 03:44:51 PM

Be careful with consumption of too much sword fish.

It's got some of the highest toxin amounts of the large predatory fish.

Yep, was gonna say. 

Explains why your grammar has been getting worser and worser, Dan.  All that lead!
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: mphgrove on April 10, 2018, 04:22:32 PM
Interesting - do you study fish professionally?

What do you mean when you say 'toxins' please?

And can you define 'VERY HIGH' - on what scale?  Measured by who?  Is there an ACCEPTABLE level of 'toxins'..?

Thanks in advance...

No not professionally. But I eat a lot of fish and there are risks associated with eating fish. Toxins are “poisons” and they can be a bit of everything but notably mercury and PCBs and sewage and industrial chemicals. Haven’t you seen people fishing in certain waters and said to yourself, “I certainly would not eat that fish.” There are lots of online resources as well as various government entities issue reports, but there is built in pressure to sugar coat some aspects of this because of the commercial implications. Not to be exhaustive but here are some examples:

Quite toxic (often the larger, long living fish that are wild caught)
Swordfish
Orange roughy
Lots of kinds of tuna
Turbot (Atlantic halibut)
Grouper
Halibut
Mahi mahi
Tilefish
Bluefish
Sea bass
Farmed salmon (always eat wild salmon)
Farmed shrimp from Asia, for example
Carp
Lake trout

In between (pretty good)
Cod
Pollack
Whiting
Haddock
Ocean perch

Good (often smaller fish)
Farmed muscles
Farmed oysters (usually)
Scallops
US tilapia
US farmed rainbow trout
US farmed catfish
Sardines
Herring
Smaller mackerel (usually, but not always)
Arctic char
Wild salmon

Fish are very local to various parts of the world. The above tends to be a US perspective.
No, I don’t know actual “acceptable” levels of toxins but often a government entity will say a pregnant woman should not eat ANY of the fish on the bad list and regular people should only eat the bad ones once or twice a month. But that can get tricky because you might eat swordfish twice a month and forget and eat orange roughy twice that same month. I tend to think the warnings are probably overly alarmist so I just have the bad ones (some of which I love) as a special treat and then eat others that I love like scallops or Arctic char or haddock or herring or muscles all the time.


Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: El Diablo Blanco on April 10, 2018, 04:28:14 PM
I always found it to have a muddied flavor. Kind of sort like. I’d rather pay more for cod or halibut
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Parker on April 10, 2018, 05:01:14 PM
No not professionally. But I eat a lot of fish and there are risks associated with eating fish. Toxins are “poisons” and they can be a bit of everything but notably mercury and PCBs and sewage and industrial chemicals. Haven’t you seen people fishing in certain waters and said to yourself, “I certainly would not eat that fish.” There are lots of online resources as well as various government entities issue reports, but there is built in pressure to sugar coat some aspects of this because of the commercial implications. Not to be exhaustive but here are some examples:

Quite toxic (often the larger, long living fish that are wild caught)
Swordfish
Orange roughy
Lots of kinds of tuna
Turbot (Atlantic halibut)
Grouper
Halibut
Mahi mahi
Tilefish
Bluefish
Sea bass
Farmed salmon (always eat wild salmon)
Farmed shrimp from Asia, for example
Carp
Lake trout

In between (pretty good)
Cod
Pollack
Whiting
Haddock
Ocean perch

Good (often smaller fish)
Farmed muscles
Farmed oysters (usually)
Scallops
US tilapia
US farmed rainbow trout
US farmed catfish
Sardines
Herring
Smaller mackerel (usually, but not always)
Arctic char
Wild salmon

Fish are very local to various parts of the world. The above tends to be a US perspective.
No, I don’t know actual “acceptable” levels of toxins but often a government entity will say a pregnant woman should not eat ANY of the fish on the bad list and regular people should only eat the bad ones once or twice a month. But that can get tricky because you might eat swordfish twice a month and forget and eat orange roughy twice that same month. I tend to think the warnings are probably overly alarmist so I just have the bad ones (some of which I love) as a special treat and then eat others that I love like scallops or Arctic char or haddock or herring or muscles all the time.



Main "toxin" would most likely be methyl mercury.
 https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methylmercury (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methylmercury)

OP needs to call it a day and go to Cracker Barrel for Fish Fry Fridays for the farm raised catfish.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: mphgrove on April 10, 2018, 05:09:32 PM
Main "toxin" would most likely be methyl mercury.
 https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methylmercury (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Methylmercury)

OP needs to call it a day and go to Cracker Barrel for Fish Fry Fridays for the farm raised catfish.

Oh great, fine on the toxins but drenched in fat (but great comfort food, drooling here)
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 10, 2018, 05:43:38 PM
My goal when eating fish is to get omega 3's or else why would you eat it? Especially tilapia, farm raised fish have little to no omega 3's, so why not just eat chicken or turkey? To me chicken or turkey taste better and are cheaper. If you want to buy wild caught fish they are damn expensive, so at the end of the day, you're better off eating chicken, beef, turkey, eggs, and supplementing with fish oil.

To  consume food?  ???  Even if you're not getting omega-3s, it's still a low-fat, high protein food source. Personally, I like the taste, I've been trying to stick to veg/pesc and fish is way easier to prepare than any other meat. I can put some rice in the instantpot, poach some fish, chop some cilantro with a little olive oil and lime  and have a great meal in 15 minutes. Minimum cleanup. The messiest thing is the cilantro on the chopping board. Fish has been a staple of diets around the world for thousands of years. If you don't like fish, then of course don't eat it, but getting omega-3s is not the main reason most people eat fish.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Princess L on April 10, 2018, 05:44:37 PM
Any seafood farmed or otherwise from southeast Asia is DISGUSTING.   :-X  They live in raw sewage contaminated waters, are fed chicken and pig feces along with steady diet of antibiotics and growth hormones.  Most fish are produced on the Mekong River in aquaculture facilities. The Mekong River is one of the most polluted rivers in the world, and there is no regulation to filter the water used in those facilities.  They also often add formaldehyde to make the fish last longer.

(https://pshute134.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/fish2.jpg?w=300&h=214)



http://www.bbncommunity.com/imported-chinese-tilapia-are-raised-on-feces/
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Irongrip400 on April 10, 2018, 05:59:58 PM
Al, talk to me about why tilapia are considered bad. Don't make me use google.  ;D
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Parker on April 10, 2018, 06:04:20 PM
Any seafood farmed or otherwise from southeast Asia is DISGUSTING.   :-X  They live in raw sewage contaminated waters, are fed chicken and pig feces along with steady diet of antibiotics and growth hormones.  Most fish are produced on the Mekong River in aquaculture facilities. The Mekong River is one of the most polluted rivers in the world, and there is no regulation to filter the water used in those facilities.  They also often add formaldehyde to make the fish last longer.

(https://pshute134.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/fish2.jpg?w=300&h=214)



http://www.bbncommunity.com/imported-chinese-tilapia-are-raised-on-feces/
Mekong River is where The Giants live.
[/youtube]

Oh great, fine on the toxins but drenched in fat (but great comfort food, drooling here)
Think of the succulent taste.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: tres_taco_combo on April 10, 2018, 07:01:43 PM
I stay away from that stuff, any farm raised fish (which is the tilapia from Walmart) the fats you are getting from that fish is omega 6 not omega 3, because those fish aren't eating algae and their natural diet, so you're better off eating chicken and it's cheaper, and just go buy a good quality fish oil and supplement with that everyday.

mnd blown here - sounds reasonable - crazy there is that much variance from walmart to fresh raised
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Go 4 It on April 10, 2018, 08:37:56 PM
To  consume food?  ???  Even if you're not getting omega-3s, it's still a low-fat, high protein food source. Personally, I like the taste, I've been trying to stick to veg/pesc and fish is way easier to prepare than any other meat. I can put some rice in the instantpot, poach some fish, chop some cilantro with a little olive oil and lime  and have a great meal in 15 minutes. Minimum cleanup. The messiest thing is the cilantro on the chopping board. Fish has been a staple of diets around the world for thousands of years. If you don't like fish, then of course don't eat it, but getting omega-3s is not the main reason most people eat fish.

Yes its still a source of protein, but most fish even farmed is way more expensive per gram of protein compared to chicken or turkey, so you'll get more bang for your buck. Plus most fish smell up your entire house when cooking them. So for me if I eat fish it's usually tuna, if I'm on the ship, I'll eat some salmon because it's free, but of course its farmed raised and probably injected with orange dye to make it look fresher then it really is.

mnd blown here - sounds reasonable - crazy there is that much variance from walmart to fresh raised
Yeah, crazy stuff dude, also have to be weary of the fish oil you take because it can be low quality and have toxins in it as well like mercury and various other metals. Our food supply is fucked on all spectrums.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Desolate on April 11, 2018, 01:27:55 AM
Great topic.

Useful.

I don't want to change the subject away from Tilapia, but I am back to two cans of tuna a week.

Too much?

Also, what are the dangers with omega 6?

Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: IRON CROSS on April 11, 2018, 02:08:12 AM
No not professionally. But I eat a lot of fish and there are risks associated with eating fish. Toxins are “poisons” and they can be a bit of everything but notably mercury and PCBs and sewage and industrial chemicals. Haven’t you seen people fishing in certain waters and said to yourself, “I certainly would not eat that fish.” There are lots of online resources as well as various government entities issue reports, but there is built in pressure to sugar coat some aspects of this because of the commercial implications. Not to be exhaustive but here are some examples:

Quite toxic (often the larger, long living fish that are wild caught)
Swordfish
Orange roughy
Lots of kinds of tuna
Turbot (Atlantic halibut)
Grouper
Halibut
Mahi mahi
Tilefish
Bluefish
Sea bass
Farmed salmon (always eat wild salmon)
Farmed shrimp from Asia, for example
Carp
Lake trout

In between (pretty good)
Cod
Pollack
Whiting
Haddock
Ocean perch

Good (often smaller fish)
Farmed muscles
Farmed oysters (usually)
Scallops
US tilapia
US farmed rainbow trout
US farmed catfish
Sardines
Herring
Smaller mackerel (usually, but not always)
Arctic char
Wild salmon

Fish are very local to various parts of the world. The above tends to be a US perspective.
No, I don’t know actual “acceptable” levels of toxins but often a government entity will say a pregnant woman should not eat ANY of the fish on the bad list and regular people should only eat the bad ones once or twice a month. But that can get tricky because you might eat swordfish twice a month and forget and eat orange roughy twice that same month. I tend to think the warnings are probably overly alarmist so I just have the bad ones (some of which I love) as a special treat and then eat others that I love like scallops or Arctic char or haddock or herring or muscles all the time.




Farmed fish  ::) = fake fish fed with corn ,soy ..........real fish eats another fish
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: IRON CROSS on April 11, 2018, 02:09:36 AM
Canned fish is totally tasteless , cats & dogs food.

Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Bindare_Dundat on April 11, 2018, 02:24:28 AM
Been on a mostly vegetarian/ pescatarian type diet for past few months. In previous years, I just avoided tilapia because of all the controversies surrounding it (I am fine with the taste). With whole foods new prices, their "responsibly raised" tilapia is actually comparable to canned albacore tuna now, so I've just been picking it up a few times a week.

I was at another grocery store over the weekend and was surprised at how much cheaper asian raised tilapia is. It has a terrible reputation, but even in nyc it was less than $5/lb. That is cheaper than decent canned tuna and also cheaper than medium quality ground beef at most places. There are a lot of strong opinions about asian raised fish. I've been doing some research, and I think I might be leaning into the camp that thinks it's probably not that bad.

What's your thoughts, getblurg? Am I an idiot? Probably so, but specifically, in regards to my thoughts on ingesting poison chinese fish?

it's a disgusting bottom dwelling shit eating fish. taste like crap too. Stay away from that garbage. If you cant afford more expensive fish you csn always try sardines.

It's one of the only fish I can't eat without destroying it with  some other flavoring.  It's absolutely horrible if you have functioning tastebuds. Did I mention they get fed shit?
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: IRON CROSS on April 11, 2018, 02:48:10 AM
Any seafood farmed or otherwise from southeast Asia is DISGUSTING.   :-X  They live in raw sewage contaminated waters, are fed chicken and pig feces along with steady diet of antibiotics and growth hormones.  Most fish are produced on the Mekong River in aquaculture facilities. The Mekong River is one of the most polluted rivers in the world, and there is no regulation to filter the water used in those facilities.  They also often add formaldehyde to make the fish last longer.

(https://pshute134.files.wordpress.com/2014/03/fish2.jpg?w=300&h=214)



http://www.bbncommunity.com/imported-chinese-tilapia-are-raised-on-feces/

Agree , pets food  ;) ;)
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: kreator on April 11, 2018, 04:02:49 AM
Sardines and mackerel, cheap,  quality, wild fish, look no further ... if i was on a really low budget i’d eat sardines everyday ... the taste and smell is what keeps me from practising this
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Thin Lizzy on April 11, 2018, 04:39:36 AM
It’s a cheap source of protein for broke losers.  Low-end salad bars always have it as their fish of choice.


it's a disgusting bottom dwelling shit eating fish. taste like crap too. Stay away from that garbage. If you cant afford more expensive fish you csn always try sardines.

It's one of the only fish I can't eat without destroying it with  some other flavoring.  It's absolutely horrible if you have functioning tastebuds. Did I mention they get fed shit?

This get bigger knows what he’s talking about.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: mphgrove on April 11, 2018, 05:41:33 AM
Farmed fish  ::) = fake fish fed with corn ,soy ..........real fish eats another fish

I disagree. You have to go a level deeper. It’s a mixed bag. Many wild caught fish that live a long time build up toxins over time. The prime example would be swordfish. However, wild salmon from the Pacific is toxin fee. I don’t know why.

Many fish farms are disgusting (see Mekong photos above; also farmed salmon in Atlantic). But many others get VERY high marks from impartial experts:
Arctic char in Greenland
Fish farms in US (catfish, tilapia)
Prince Edward Island shellfish
Possibly Mediteranean sea bass (Bronzino) in Spain, Greece (but not positive).

Small wild fish are generally fine: sardines, herring, most mackerel
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Rambone on April 11, 2018, 06:11:05 AM
With so many other better tasting proteins on the planet available, why resort to eating tilapia?
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: mphgrove on April 11, 2018, 06:16:29 AM
With so many other better tasting proteins on the planet available, why resort to eating tilapia?

I think because it’s relatively cheap and tasteless. Lots of Midwesterners don’t really like fish so they prefer a tasteless fish. Also, it IS good for contest prep and your wife doesn’t complain about kitchen smell as much as with other fish.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Bindare_Dundat on April 11, 2018, 06:33:00 AM
Sardines and mackerel, cheap,  quality, wild fish, look no further ... if i was on a really low budget i’d eat sardines everyday ... the taste and smell is what keeps me from practising this

agreed. although i personally don't care when a halitosis breathing asshat that smokes tells me the fish sticks. I just warn people before I crack the can open. Most of the time no one gives a fuck and if anything I start seeing more guys bring sardines to work. lol

It's cheap, tastes great and is great for ya.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: mphgrove on April 11, 2018, 06:46:30 AM
agreed. although i personally don't care when a halitosis breathing asshat that smokes tells me the fish sticks. I just warn people before I crack the can open. Most of the time no one gives a fuck and if anything I start seeing more guys bring sardines to work. lol

It's cheap, tastes great and is great for ya.

Heart will stay in good shape if you eat sardines every day.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: residue on April 11, 2018, 07:38:55 AM
With so many other better tasting proteins on the planet available, why resort to eating tilapia?

its a blank canvas
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: oldtimer1 on April 11, 2018, 07:42:16 AM
There is so much fraud with fish. Sea Bass is amazing and expensive. They say many restaurants deceive by using cheaper fish constantly when someone asks for sea bass. Anything coming from Asia is suspect and sellers know this. Many put a USA tag on their Asian fish to sell. Costco you can trust most of the time. One of the few places you can get real extra virgin olive oil instead of cheap counterfeit oil.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 11, 2018, 07:55:19 AM
agreed. although i personally don't care when a halitosis breathing asshat that smokes tells me the fish sticks. I just warn people before I crack the can open. Most of the time no one gives a fuck and if anything I start seeing more guys bring sardines to work. lol

It's cheap, tastes great and is great for ya.

LOL In your last post, you responded to me by saying that tilapia is sooo awful tasting, then suggested sardines. I was going to type that I don't think I've ever heard anyone say that sardines were a better taste alternative  than tilapia, but then before  I can even do that you agree with another poster that they are nasty and stink? I'm not even  a sardine snob, I like them and started a thread on here a while ago about how more people should try them for protein diets.

Anyway, different people have different tastes. I like the taste of tilapia. It has a mild taste, definitely not something to get worked up about. It has no smell when poaching, it has a rich texture. Granted, you were also talking about some of the other, more controversial aspects of tilapia and that's why I started this thread. I think a lot of that stuff may be simplified and overblown.

There's a lot in this thread that I want to respond to, but I'm a little busy at work right now, so I'll try to do some in-depth responses after lunch. I just wanted to get this response up real quick.  


Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: The Keto Kid on April 11, 2018, 08:16:55 AM
Heart will stay in good shape if you eat sardines every day.
Be careful on high levels of arsenic.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 11, 2018, 08:17:05 AM
Yes its still a source of protein, but most fish even farmed is way more expensive per gram of protein compared to chicken or turkey, so you'll get more bang for your buck. Plus most fish smell up your entire house when cooking them. So for me if I eat fish it's usually tuna, if I'm on the ship, I'll eat some salmon because it's free, but of course its farmed raised and probably injected with orange dye to make it look fresher then it really is.

In my opening post, I specifically talk about price. "Organic" tilapia at whole foods is $8/lb. A 5 oz can of bumblebee solid albacore tuna is about $3 on average, which would mean it's roughly $10/lb. Whole foods tilapia is on the higher end of the price and quality scale. Like I said in that first post, asian tilapia was even less.  I've said it several times in this thread, but I've never had any problem with tilapia smelling up anything. It has very little smell out of its packaging and it has very little smell when you poach it. I actually think canned tuna a more pronounced smell than tilapia while poaching.

Like I said, you can eat whatever you want. I'm not trying to convince you otherwise, but the problems you have with tilapia either aren't things I've experienced or that would be of concern to me.  
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Princess L on April 11, 2018, 08:23:38 AM
Seems like no one really gives a shit about the literal shit that comes out of Southeast Asia.
 :-X :-X :-X
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Go 4 It on April 11, 2018, 08:42:27 AM
In my opening post, I specifically talk about price. "Organic" tilapia at whole foods is $8/lb. A 5 oz can of bumblebee solid albacore tuna is about $3 on average, which would mean it's roughly $10/lb. Whole foods tilapia is on the higher end of the price and quality scale. Like I said in that first post, asian tilapia was even less.  I've said it several times in this thread, but I've never had any problem with tilapia smelling up anything. It has very little smell out of its packaging and it has very little smell when you poach it. I actually think canned tuna a more pronounced smell than tilapia while poaching.

Like I said, you can eat whatever you want. I'm not trying to convince you otherwise, but the problems you have with tilapia either aren't things I've experienced or that would be of concern to me.  
No worries bro, eat what want, I'm just shedding some light on the differences between farmed and wild caught fish, specifically tilapia.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Vince G, CSN MFT on April 11, 2018, 08:43:54 AM
Been on a mostly vegetarian/ pescatarian type diet for past few months. In previous years, I just avoided tilapia because of all the controversies surrounding it (I am fine with the taste). With whole foods new prices, their "responsibly raised" tilapia is actually comparable to canned albacore tuna now, so I've just been picking it up a few times a week.

I was at another grocery store over the weekend and was surprised at how much cheaper asian raised tilapia is. It has a terrible reputation, but even in nyc it was less than $5/lb. That is cheaper than decent canned tuna and also cheaper than medium quality ground beef at most places. There are a lot of strong opinions about asian raised fish. I've been doing some research, and I think I might be leaning into the camp that thinks it's probably not that bad.

What's your thoughts, getblurg? Am I an idiot? Probably so, but specifically, in regards to my thoughts on ingesting poison chinese fish?


They are fine...you just have to add seasoning to it because it has no actual flavor.   Its low cost is perfect for budget conscious people.   If you are concerned with Omega 3's, you should just take a supplement
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Princess L on April 11, 2018, 09:13:48 AM
http://www.seafoodwatch.org/
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: NotMrAverage on April 11, 2018, 10:06:10 AM
I stay away from that stuff, any farm raised fish (which is the tilapia from Walmart) the fats you are getting from that fish is omega 6 not omega 3, because those fish aren't eating algae and their natural diet, so you're better off eating chicken and it's cheaper, and just go buy a good quality fish oil and supplement with that everyday.

I say go chicken as well. Tilapia is good for a change one in a while. Mostly i stay on chicken and ground beef though. Some fish thrown in here and there.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: residue on April 11, 2018, 11:48:11 AM
Americans in general seem to opposed to fish, but somehow can chow down on cheap chinese cat meat or anything on a 7/11 menu.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Rambone on April 11, 2018, 12:16:14 PM
I think because it’s relatively cheap and tasteless. Lots of Midwesterners don’t really like fish so they prefer a tasteless fish. Also, it IS good for contest prep and your wife doesn’t complain about kitchen smell as much as with other fish.

Other than it being cheap, how is it good for contest prep? Chicken breast macros are virtually the same and it’s a blank canvas. Please don’t say because it “thins your skin out” haha

You can contest prep just fine on whey, 95/5 beef, egg whites, and chicken breast. Even throw in some wild caught flounder if you want some fish. Anything that makes it easier to keep you in a caloric deficit and that you enjoy eating is best for a prep. I’ve never heard anybody say “I can’t wait to go home and eat my tilapia.”
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 11, 2018, 01:13:29 PM


Also, what are the dangers with omega 6?



There's not a definitive danger, but there is evidence that higher omega 6 consumption can lead to inflammation. The thing is tilapia is very nutrient rich and even farmed tilapia has a comparable level of omega 3s as probably most other fish. So if your diet is relatively balanced then you most likely aren't going to experience this problem. Humans need both of those things and inflammation isn't even an all bad thing. It's a necessary body to some degree.

Go4 It might chime in with a different viewpoint, and obviously if you've seen his pics, you shouldn't disregard anything he has to say about diet, but at the same time, even scientific bodies make contradictory nutritional recommendations.  So anyone's advice should be taken with a grain of salt.

Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 11, 2018, 01:15:01 PM
I’ve never heard anybody say “I can’t wait to go home and eat my tilapia.”

It's  one of the top 5 best selling sea food items in America. Do you really think that's all people who dislike it or are ambivalent about it?
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Rambone on April 11, 2018, 01:20:58 PM
It's  one of the top 5 best selling sea food items in America. Do you really think that's all people who dislike it or are ambivalent about it?

I think they’re either poor or lack knowledge in nutrition. The average American is dumb, fat, sick and in debt.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Irongrip400 on April 11, 2018, 01:22:03 PM
It's  one of the top 5 best selling sea food items in America. Do you really think that's all people who dislike it or are ambivalent about it?

It's cheap and somewhat healthy.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 11, 2018, 01:35:35 PM
I think they’re either poor or lack knowledge in nutrition. The average American is dumb, fat, sick and in debt.

You can get many other proteins for a comparable price. There are other fish that are cheaper. It doesn't make sense that tilapia' s popularity is due mainly to poor stupid people as opposed to people who like the taste. What other protein is massively popular despite no one liking it?
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Go 4 It on April 11, 2018, 01:41:40 PM
There's not a definitive danger, but there is evidence that higher omega 6 consumption can lead to inflammation. The thing is tilapia is very nutrient rich and even farmed tilapia has a comparable level of omega 3s as probably most other fish. So if your diet is relatively balanced then you most likely aren't going to experience this problem. Humans need both of those things and inflammation isn't even an all bad thing. It's a necessary body to some degree.

Go4 It might chime in with a different viewpoint, and obviously if you've seen his pics, you shouldn't disregard anything he has to say about diet, but at the same time, even scientific bodies make contradictory nutritional recommendations.  So anyone's advice should be taken with a grain of salt.


Nothing wrong with omega 6's, I'm just saying my whole goal when eating fish is for it's Omega 3 health benefits, if farm raised fish has little to no omega 3's then I'd rather opt for chicken or turkey based on price and taste and supplement with fish oils.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Rambone on April 11, 2018, 01:51:15 PM
You can get many other proteins for a comparable price. There are other fish that are cheaper. It doesn't make sense that tilapia' s popularity is due mainly to poor stupid people as opposed to people who like the taste. What other protein is massively popular despite no one liking it?

I guess I’m not in-touch or friends with the average American eating all of this farm-raised tilapia. I won’t be losing any sleep over it since I am bigger, leaner, and stronger than these tilapia-eating pussies
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Tapeworm on April 11, 2018, 03:57:05 PM
Seems like no one really gives a shit about the literal shit that comes out of Southeast Asia.
 :-X :-X :-X

I got bigger fish to fry.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Desolate on April 11, 2018, 05:39:28 PM
Am I the only one still using canned tuna?

Am I too old-fashioned or retro? :-\ :)

I like to put it on my salad with a homemade olive oil/apple cider vinegar based dressing.

I try to buy the albacore and stock up when there is a supermarket sale.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: tres_taco_combo on April 11, 2018, 07:17:24 PM
I think because it’s relatively cheap and tasteless. Lots of Midwesterners don’t really like fish so they prefer a tasteless fish. Also, it IS good for contest prep and your wife doesn’t complain about kitchen smell as much as with other fish.

interesting comment about the midwestern thing

yea its cheap, easy to put down, white fish is amazing for prep
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Parker on April 11, 2018, 09:59:52 PM
Am I the only one still using canned tuna?

Am I too old-fashioned or retro? :-\ :)

I like to put it on my salad with a homemade olive oil/apple cider vinegar based dressing.

I try to buy the albacore and stock up when there is a supermarket sale.
Canned tuna seems to have lower sodium levels than the bagged versions. I like eating the tuna with salsa.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Bindare_Dundat on April 11, 2018, 10:05:03 PM
LOL In your last post, you responded to me by saying that tilapia is sooo awful tasting, then suggested sardines. I was going to type that I don't think I've ever heard anyone say that sardines were a better taste alternative  than tilapia, but then before  I can even do that you agree with another poster that they are nasty and stink? I'm not even  a sardine snob, I like them and started a thread on here a while ago about how more people should try them for protein diets.

Anyway, different people have different tastes. I like the taste of tilapia. It has a mild taste, definitely not something to get worked up about. It has no smell when poaching, it has a rich texture. Granted, you were also talking about some of the other, more controversial aspects of tilapia and that's why I started this thread. I think a lot of that stuff may be simplified and overblown.

There's a lot in this thread that I want to respond to, but I'm a little busy at work right now, so I'll try to do some in-depth responses after lunch. I just wanted to get this response up real quick.  




if youre gonna eat it anyway then shut the fuck up and eat it and don't start pointless threads.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: be back on April 12, 2018, 12:55:34 AM
people injecting ugl steroids, concerned about toxins in fish...........
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: IRON CROSS on April 12, 2018, 02:33:46 AM
People get real, canned fish is tasteless. Just like fresh fruit vs canned fruit.


Eat fresh food .
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 12, 2018, 08:05:35 AM
if youre gonna eat it anyway then shut the fuck up and eat it and don't start pointless threads.

Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Thin Lizzy on April 12, 2018, 08:17:33 AM
Is this thread still alive? The getbig consensus, which is rarely wrong, has spoken. Tilapia is a disgusting food and anyone who consumes it should experience a deep and profound sense of shame.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 12, 2018, 08:36:50 AM
Is this thread still alive? The getbig consensus, which is rarely wrong, has spoken. Tilapia is a disgusting food and anyone who consumes it should experience a deep and profound sense of shame.

Getbig is literally always wrong. There was a thread going on a few days ago where both participants managed to be factually wrong despite disagreeing with each other, and only needed to do a simple dictionary search to prove it... which no one bothered doing for 4 pages. You agreed with someone that a better tasting option to eating tilapia was eating a fish that that poster admitted smelled and tasted worse.  Of course this thread is still going on. People have these bizarrely passionate ideas about this simple fish. That's the reason this thread was started. If you're not interested, you know what your options are
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: be back on April 12, 2018, 09:49:15 AM
Getbig is literally always wrong. There was a thread going on a few days ago where both participants managed to be factually wrong despite disagreeing with each other, and only needed to do a simple dictionary search to prove it... which no one bothered doing for 4 pages. You agreed with someone that a better tasting option to eating tilapia was eating a fish that that poster admitted smelled and tasted worse.  Of course this thread is still going on. People have these bizarrely passionate ideas about this simple fish. That's the reason this thread was started. If you're not interested, you know what your options are
thats what makes getbig great...
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Thin Lizzy on April 12, 2018, 12:05:01 PM
Getbig is literally always wrong.

You must’ve missed my post predicting that Trump would win the presidency with 310 electoral votes. I was one percentage point in New Hampshire away from nailing it exactly.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Las Vegas on April 12, 2018, 12:56:04 PM
So.  What's the best tuna?

Or, have you ever asked yourself:

Who holds the key, that winds up Big Ben?
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Thin Lizzy on April 12, 2018, 01:15:47 PM
Let’s be honest. Fish sucks. I could live out my days quite nicely without ever eating another piece of any type of fish.


Chicken, turkey and beef.👍
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Montague on April 12, 2018, 02:42:03 PM
Sardines and mackerel, cheap,  quality, wild fish, look no further ... if i was on a really low budget i’d eat sardines everyday ... the taste and smell is what keeps me from practising this


Sardines are a much more sustainable fish source because they generally contain much lower levels of toxins than larger predatory fish.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Thin Lizzy on April 12, 2018, 03:47:45 PM

Sardines are a much more sustainable fish source because they generally contain much lower levels of toxins than larger predatory fish.

I don’t think sardines have ever made anybody’s mouth water.  I can eat them but they’re not a food I would seek out.

How’s life, Mont?
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 12, 2018, 04:10:27 PM
I don’t think sardines have ever made anybody’s mouth water.  I can eat them but they’re not a food I would seek out.
A few people, maybe...

http://www.getbig.com/boards/index.php?topic=615716.0
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: tres_taco_combo on April 12, 2018, 04:57:21 PM
is white fish the best protein pre contest?

arm chair expert - yes

digests easy, you always end up eating less of it too -
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Irongrip400 on April 12, 2018, 06:05:02 PM
Canned tuna seems to have lower sodium levels than the bagged versions. I like eating the tuna with salsa.

My fucking mind is blown. I have never even thought about adding salsa to tuna. I'm going to try that. Thanks hoss.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Montague on April 12, 2018, 06:14:06 PM
I don’t think sardines have ever made anybody’s mouth water.  I can eat them but they’re not a food I would seek out.

How’s life, Mont?


I really enjoy the Brunswick smoked in olive oil when I'm doing Keto.
But... I'm also a huge fish & seafood fan.


I'm doing okay, brother. Staying busy and making money.
How about yourself?
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Parker on April 12, 2018, 06:31:02 PM
Getbig is literally always wrong. There was a thread going on a few days ago where both participants managed to be factually wrong despite disagreeing with each other, and only needed to do a simple dictionary search to prove it... which no one bothered doing for 4 pages. You agreed with someone that a better tasting option to eating tilapia was eating a fish that that poster admitted smelled and tasted worse.  Of course this thread is still going on. People have these bizarrely passionate ideas about this simple fish. That's the reason this thread was started. If you're not interested, you know what your options are
Tomorrow is Friday. Cracker Barrel has Fish Fry Fridays, which is farm raised catfish. Enjoy. Or fry up some whiting and have some hush puppies and be done with it.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 12, 2018, 07:47:00 PM
Seems like no one really gives a shit about the literal shit that comes out of Southeast Asia.
 :-X :-X :-X

Haha of course we give a shit about you, you purple menace you. I thought the points you were bringing up were going to be the main topic of the thread, with "tilapia is for poor people" being a close second.

So, a little backstory. I didn't eat tilapia regularly until recently. I was vaguely aware of the warnings, didn't look into it much further , so just avoided it. There was other seafood I liked, there were other proteins I liked and my plant intake has gone up a lot in the last few years, so I wasn't missing anything. Maybe about a year or two years ago, we were at the grocery store and needed some white fish for a fish salad. We both said let's not do tilapia, so we got basa, which neither of us had heard of at that time. When we got home I looked it up and I was surprised that its nutritional profile was so different from tilapia. Did a little research and was like, tilapia's a pretty decent fish, especially if you get it from a place that raises it responsibly, blah, blah blah. Still didn't start eating it regularly until amazon bought whole foods and dropped the price late last year.

Fast forward to a few weeks ago. Was watching the finale of the show top chef with my wife and one of the challenges is catching a fish from a river and cooking it in 30 minutes. One of the contestants takes a long time to catch her fish and she says that she's only going to have time to make a trout sushi. We looked at each other and were like "Can you make that? I've never seen trout sushi." The show judge familiar with the area said  that it's not safe to eat undercooked fish from that river because the wildlife around there shits in it and the fish live in a contaminated environment. They ended up disqualifying her dish. so there's two interesting aspects about that to me. 1- There's the acknowledgement that the fresh, wild caught fish is not necessarily safe. 2)It's a "fancy" cooking show, so there's the aspect of these gourmands eating fish that just came out of toilet water.

So, this got me thinking about how a lot of people consider tilapia. It has such a negative reputation, but a lot of the things that it gets derided for either aren't negatives or aren't really unique to farmed fish. Wild caught fish aren't necessarily less likely to carry disease or toxins. There is an increase in the amount of sushi places using farmed fish not only because of price, but because it is generally considered safer and more consistent. Farming fish is the best way to guarantee sustainability. Part of the reason tilapia exploded in the last 15 years is because there was a gap in the market after some other fish variants collapsed. We don't get any other food, much less a major protein, in any other way. In terms of health,  even with lower Omega 3s than wild caught, farmed tilapia still has a high level of them.


I specifically was not addressing you because I think some of the things you posted are the most legitimate concerns about the rise of cheap tilapia, but I also think it reasonable to question how widespread and how dangerous those concerns are.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: tres_taco_combo on April 12, 2018, 09:59:30 PM
My fucking mind is blown. I have never even thought about adding salsa to tuna. I'm going to try that. Thanks hoss.

my old goto

drain the water, add hot sauce and sunflower seeds and mix it up
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: seCrawler on April 12, 2018, 10:17:55 PM
So.  What's the best tuna?



Albacore
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Las Vegas on April 12, 2018, 10:20:23 PM
Albacore

With dolphin?
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: be back on April 13, 2018, 12:12:38 AM
. Maybe about a year or two years ago, we were at the grocery store and needed some white fish for a fish salad. We both said let's not do tilapia, so we got basa, which neither of us had heard of at that time. When we got home I looked it up and I was surprised that its nutritional profile was so different from tilapia.
Basa fillets taste like dirty dishwater, absolutely gross
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Montague on April 13, 2018, 02:14:01 AM
The show judge familiar with the area said  that it's not safe to eat undercooked fish from that river because the wildlife around there shits in it and the fish live in a contaminated environment. They ended up disqualifying her dish. so there's two interesting aspects about that to me. 1- There's the acknowledgement that the fresh, wild caught fish is not necessarily safe. 2)It's a "fancy" cooking show, so there's the aspect of these gourmands eating fish that just came out of toilet water.


I wish I could hear or read the full quote. I'd be more concerned about sewage and other manmade pollution - depending on the river.
But as for the "concern" over animals shitting in it...


In all my years hunting, fishing, camping, and hiking... I've never once seen any land animal go to a body of water specifically to shit in it. I'm not saying it doesn't happen; just that it doesn't seem common. I'll also concede that some amount of deer shit, bear shit, raccoon shit, possum shit, squirrel shit, coyote shit, chipmunk shit, etc. finds its way into rivers and streams as a result of rain runoff, but it's still nowhere near the concentration of shit that water would see if even just some of those animals regularly used the river as a toilet.

Naturally, aquatic life will shit in their respective habitat, but that constitutes a normal part of their ecosystem. Also, in rivers, the water is constantly moving, and there's usually a good bit of it. The fish and their shit are spread out. It's not like they're all crapping into a bucket. The shit gets diluted into many parts water.

Point is: ALL rivers contain natural amounts of wildlife shit. That DOES NOT make them "polluted."
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Thin Lizzy on April 13, 2018, 03:56:34 AM

I really enjoy the Brunswick smoked in olive oil when I'm doing Keto.
But... I'm also a huge fish & seafood fan.


I'm doing okay, brother. Staying busy and making money.
How about yourself?

 Glad to hear it’s going well. I can’t complain.

Can’t remember the last time I had fish. I think it was in an all you can eat buffet up in Saratoga.

Back to the topic at hand:

If you go to a low-end salad bar you often see tilapia. The high-end places will primarily have salmon. Given a choice between the two, would anybody go with the former? The only reason to do so is financial. I don’t bargain hunt when it comes to food.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Go 4 It on April 13, 2018, 08:24:01 AM

I wish I could hear or read the full quote. I'd be more concerned about sewage and other manmade pollution - depending on the river.
But as for the "concern" over animals shitting in it...


In all my years hunting, fishing, camping, and hiking... I've never once seen any land animal go to a body of water specifically to shit in it. I'm not saying it doesn't happen; just that it doesn't seem common. I'll also concede that some amount of deer shit, bear shit, raccoon shit, possum shit, squirrel shit, coyote shit, chipmunk shit, etc. finds its way into rivers and streams as a result of rain runoff, but it's still nowhere near the concentration of shit that water would see if even just some of those animals regularly used the river as a toilet.

Naturally, aquatic life will shit in their respective habitat, but that constitutes a normal part of their ecosystem. Also, in rivers, the water is constantly moving, and there's usually a good bit of it. The fish and their shit are spread out. It's not like they're all crapping into a bucket. The shit gets diluted into many parts water.

Point is: ALL rivers contain natural amounts of wildlife shit. That DOES NOT make them "polluted."
Reading this brought to my mind about the ocean and wild caught fish, I remember when I first started working on the ship after a morning breakfast service I was walking through a galley and I say them dumping pans full of food, eggs Bennedict, pancakes, bacon sausage, etc, then I witnessed an outdoor bar and grill dump tons of hamburgers, hot dogs, fries, etc...I asked what happens to all this food? The chef told me it get mashed up in a pulper and dispensed into the ocean, it has to be a certain distance off the shoreline to dispense it, but it all gets dumped into the ocean. So now you got fish and marine life eating things that have zero business being in the ocean.  So again our food supply is fucked.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Princess L on April 13, 2018, 08:50:14 AM
Basa fillets taste like dirty dishwater, absolutely gross

Because it's just another sewer fish out of Southeast Asia, predominantly the Mekong river.  Again, one of the most polluted rivers in the world.  Raw human sewage is pumped into the river.  Pig and chicken farmers also dump into the river to feed the fish.  In fact, many fish farmers are also chicken farmers and they house their chicken cages right over their fish farm.

(http://beforeitsnews.com/contributor/upload/233488/images/tilapia.jpg)
http://beforeitsnews.com/food-and-farming/2014/09/imported-chinese-tilapia-are-often-raised-on-feces-2469544.html
(http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N6N2SX51d7w&t=114s)
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: residue on April 13, 2018, 09:05:53 AM
Reading this brought to my mind about the ocean and wild caught fish, I remember when I first started working on the ship after a morning breakfast service I was walking through a galley and I say them dumping pans full of food, eggs Bennedict, pancakes, bacon sausage, etc, then I witnessed an outdoor bar and grill dump tons of hamburgers, hot dogs, fries, etc...I asked what happens to all this food? The chef told me it get mashed up in a pulper and dispensed into the ocean, it has to be a certain distance off the shoreline to dispense it, but it all gets dumped into the ocean. So now you got fish and marine life eating things that have zero business being in the ocean.  So again our food supply is fucked.
minuscule amounts
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 13, 2018, 11:13:54 AM
Basa fillets taste like dirty dishwater, absolutely gross

Yeah. Now we know
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 13, 2018, 11:16:10 AM

I wish I could hear or read the full quote. I'd be more concerned about sewage and other manmade pollution - depending on the river.
But as for the "concern" over animals shitting in it...


In all my years hunting, fishing, camping, and hiking... I've never once seen any land animal go to a body of water specifically to shit in it. I'm not saying it doesn't happen; just that it doesn't seem common. I'll also concede that some amount of deer shit, bear shit, raccoon shit, possum shit, squirrel shit, coyote shit, chipmunk shit, etc. finds its way into rivers and streams as a result of rain runoff, but it's still nowhere near the concentration of shit that water would see if even just some of those animals regularly used the river as a toilet.

Naturally, aquatic life will shit in their respective habitat, but that constitutes a normal part of their ecosystem. Also, in rivers, the water is constantly moving, and there's usually a good bit of it. The fish and their shit are spread out. It's not like they're all crapping into a bucket. The shit gets diluted into many parts water.

Point is: ALL rivers contain natural amounts of wildlife shit. That DOES NOT make them "polluted."
 

I only phrased it like that for the sake of brevity to make a specific point. On the show, he said something like "does a bear shit in the woods? And shit flows  downhill...". He didn't specifically use the words contaminated or polluted.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: HTexan on April 13, 2018, 02:24:33 PM
Fish is for poofters, real men eat beef.... wait that didn’t come out right  ;D
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Montague on April 13, 2018, 03:39:54 PM
 

I only phrased it like that for the sake of brevity to make a specific point. On the show, he said something like "does a bear shit in the woods? And shit flows  downhill...". He didn't specifically use the words contaminated or polluted.


Okay.

I'll give him a pass.


They need to dramatize it a lot for television.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Desolate on April 13, 2018, 05:01:06 PM
Albacore

Agree.

But I wonder about the mercury.

As I posted, I am averaging about two cans per week and worry if that is too much. :-\
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 13, 2018, 06:07:10 PM
Can’t remember the last time I had fish. I think it was in an all you can eat buffet up in Saratoga.

If you go to a low-end salad bar you often see tilapia. The high-end places will primarily have salmon. Given a choice between the two, would anybody go with the former? The only reason to do so is financial. I don’t bargain hunt when it comes to food.


I read your post after I came back from lunch at like 2, so I had to wait until I went on a break at around 430 to get some stealth pictures of the salad bar next door to my office. This place is huge and has been rated one of the best salad bar/ buffets in nyc by New York magazine. They put out a full sushi spread for lunch, have two hot bars, two cold bars and  coffee, sushi, pastry, stations. They restock everything until about 8  at night, whereas most other places like this start selling things for half price after 3 or 4. I'm saying all of this to say that this is a place that's considered above average quality (I'm not sure my pictures give a good idea of what it's like, so the last 3 pics are from their website). They were actually restocking for the dinner rush when I took these pics. You see a tray of salmon that hasn't been refilled yet, and a tray of tilapia that had just been refilled a few minutes before I took the picture. I go to this place about 3 times a week because it's so close. They have both of those options everyday. The people who choose tilapia, can choose the salmon or one of the several kinds of shrimp or the sushi or the pork belly or the ribs or whatever else. They put out about 100 items a day  and whatever you get it's $9.99/lb, so the people who are choosing the tilapia clearly are not choosing it to save money. I don't know if you are trying to sound like a baller or something, but if you're someone who frequents all-can-eat buffets, then it's pretty clear that you do bargain hunt for food, to some degree. And there's absolutely nothing wrong with  taking price into consideration when it comes to what you eat. I've worked with multimillionaires who will choose a place for lunch based partially on price. I have friends who are in the millionaire club who brag about how much they save shopping at fairway and tj's. There was a 99 cent fresh around the corner from a place  I worked not too long ago and one of the guys I worked with (who cleared at least $300k/yr) would send his assistant out everyday to get two slices. Pretty much all of the men in the office ate there regularly, regardless of income.  This post is already psychotically long, so I wont go into the illusory science of pricing  or the perception of value, but suffice it to say, I don't consider watching your wallet anything to be ashamed of.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 13, 2018, 06:10:10 PM
So, I just gotta few pics of the dishes the yserved and didn't realize you can't really tell what kind of place it is until I was about to post these, so here's some shots from their website. It's obviously not a low-end, broke dick joint:
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 13, 2018, 06:12:26 PM

Okay.

I'll give him a pass.


They need to dramatize it a lot for television.

I will let them know. They should be relieved.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: cephissus on April 14, 2018, 01:35:48 AM
lay off the stimulants, al, for your own health
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Thin Lizzy on April 14, 2018, 04:36:30 AM
lay off the stimulants, al, for your own health

I suspect he’s too far gone. Poor guy :'(

Another thing that is annoying about fish is those fucking needles that can get caught in your throat. You don’t have that with chicken or beef.

In hindsight, the 70s bodybuilders had it right about everything, food, training and drugs.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Parker on April 14, 2018, 06:10:54 AM
NYC doesn't have Cracker Barrel, I was told...too bad for you Al...
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 14, 2018, 08:13:58 AM
lay off the stimulants, al, for your own health

Certainly. Next thing you know, I'll be injuring myself counting to ten and then writing fake news articles about my convoluted plan to receive free tilapia in college.  ::)
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 14, 2018, 08:15:35 AM


Another thing that is annoying about fish is those fucking needles that can get caught in your throat. You don’t have that with chicken or beef.



You mean one thing, right? Because you've literally been wrong about everything else.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Thin Lizzy on April 14, 2018, 08:20:47 AM
You mean one thing, right? Because you've literally been wrong about everything else.

The biggest thing I’ve been wrong about is getting involved in one of your obsessive compulsive threads.
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: Al Doggity on April 14, 2018, 08:30:48 AM
The biggest thing I’ve been wrong about is getting involved in one of your obsessive compulsive threads.

Which I advised you to stop posting in at least twice?
Title: Re: Tilapia: Your thoughts on this CONTROVERSIAL fish
Post by: cephissus on April 14, 2018, 11:55:48 AM
the right half of your brain is begging for some exercise... try giving the left half a vacation