Arctic char

---

Introduction

Arctic char is a popular freshwater fish species raised throughout Canada. Arctic char are raised on a commercial scale in the Yukon Territory, Manitoba, Ontario, Quebec, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island.

Basic description

Arctic char, Salvelinus alpinus, is a member of the salmon family. It resembles a salmon in appearance, but is genetically more closely linked to trout. There are two subgroups - a sea-run group and a freshwater (land-locked) group. The sea-run fish are larger, commonly weighing 2.3 to 4.5 kg (5 to 10 pounds), while the freshwater group can range in weight from 0.2 to 2.3 kg (1/2 to 5 pounds).

The colour of these fish is extremely variable. Wild, sea-run adults are commonly deep blue or blue-green over the back, shading to glistening silver on the sides and white over the belly. A distinguishing feature is a series of large, round spots, usually violet-pink, scattered on the sides.

Farmed char has redder skin with cream-colored spots. The flesh colour of char can range from a bright red to a pale pink, however most farmed char are uniform in flesh color. Farmed char reach market-sized between 1 to 2.3 kg (2 - 5 pounds), depending on retail demand. The taste is generally considered somewhat milder than Atlantic salmon (farmed or wild).

Background

The Arctic char has the most northerly distribution of any of the freshwater fish. It is the dominant species of the Arctic and for centuries has been an important food resource of the Inuit.

Farm production of Arctic Char in Canada has emerged beyond the development stage. Commercial production is also increasing in Iceland, Norway and other European countries. Estimates are that between 950,000 and 1,300,000 kg of finished char products were marketed from those sources in 2005. In the USA, char farming takes place in the West Virginia and in Washington State.

Although Arctic char has been farmed for well over a decade, farmed char production remains small. Farmers have had considerable difficulty selecting char that consistently perform well because of its complex genetic makeup. Until farmers can solve these problems, supply of Arctic char will remain relatively limited.

Research aimed at determining the suitability of Arctic Char as a farmed species began in the late 70's. Fisheries and Oceans Canada's Freshwater Institute in Winnipeg, Manitoba and the Huntsman Marine Science Laboratory of New Brunswick, pioneered the early efforts in Canada.

Arctic Char were first investigated as an aquaculture species because it was expected that they would have low optimum temperature requirements and would grow well at the cold water temperatures present in numerous areas of Canada. It was also expected that Char would be an alternate species to Rainbow Trout and could provide producers with a unique product and a niche in seafood markets.

The initial research efforts concentrated on identifying the culture needs, growth characteristics and performance of Arctic Char in various types of fish farming systems. The Freshwater Institute also distributed small batches of char eggs to producers in Canada, these producers in return helped determine the suitability of char in a commercial setting. Many present day commercial farm breeding stocks have been developed largely from these sources.

*Thank you to Northern Aqua Farms for granting permission to use information regarding Arctic char aquaculture on this webpage.

For more information

Millbrook's Dive into Aquaculture

• Millbrook First Nation, a Mi'kmaq community, cultures Arctic char in Nova Scotia.

Note: This page contains links to Web sites not under the control of the Government of Canada.  For further information on our hyperlinking practices, please refer to the Hyperlinking Notice.