577: The Last Wild Protein: What You Need to Know About Salmon with Steve Kurian

Wise Traditions

Weston A. Price Foundation

Alternative Health, Health & Fitness

4.7 • 2.4K Ratings

🗓️ 4 May 2026

⏱️ 41 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

What if one of the most powerful foods on earth comes from a place so wild, so untouched, that it still operates exactly as nature intended?

In this episode, Steve Kurian of Wild for Salmon shares the story of a life-changing summer spent on the remote shores of Bristol Bay, Alaska—living by the rhythms of the tides, the weather, and one of the largest salmon runs on the planet.

The conversation explores what makes wild salmon so unique—from its extraordinary life cycle to its essential role in nourishing entire ecosystems—and why this pristine food source stands in such stark contrast to modern, industrialized alternatives.

Steve also offers a glimpse into the realities of commercial fishing: the long hours, the dangerous conditions, and the deep respect required to harvest food in a truly sustainable way. Along the way, themes of connection, stewardship, and traditional foodways emerge—inviting a deeper look at how we source, prepare, and value what we eat.

This episode is a reminder that food is not just fuel—it is part of a living system. And when that system is honored and protected, it has the power to nourish both people and the planet.

WAPF Membership Ad

Visit Steve Kurian's website to learn more

Join the Nourishing Our Children closed Facebook group

Check out our sponsors:

Nutrition Therapy Institute "Get 50% off your first course" and

Paleovalley "Get 15% off your first order."

Transcript

Click on a timestamp to play from that location

0:00.0	the whole fishery as a whole is getting better, but it's always been a competition production-based
0:04.8	fishery. And early on, as I started to sell salmon and talk to customers and want to provide the very
0:11.3	best, it became very obvious to me that you need to take care of every fish. So you're not kicking
0:15.7	them in the fishholds. You're not making sets that are too large and you have to bring them on board and let them sit on the
0:21.7	deck. You're really handling them as if there are food source and somebody who's going to eat this
0:26.4	fish. And the bay in general is improving as we go forward in time. But when I first started,
0:32.1	it was there was like boats without refrigerated systems. And then there was guys that nobody
0:37.4	would bleed their fish and they would not care if their deck hands kick the systems. And then there was guys that nobody would bleed their fish
0:38.4	and they would not care if their deck hands kick the fish. And so like we hold a very high
0:43.7	standard and think of those, you know, as fish that we're going to serve to our customers. And when
0:48.1	you put that mindset on, it really changes yours. I think it's what is really changing fishermen as a
0:53.3	whole is like the ability to understand that it's what is really changing fishermen as a whole. This is like the ability
0:56.0	to understand that it's a food. It's not just a commodity that you're there, the harvest.
1:04.0	From the Weston A Price Foundation, welcome to the Wise Traditions podcast for Wise Traditions in Food, Farming, and the Healing Arts.
1:14.1	We are your source for scientific knowledge and traditional wisdom to help you achieve optimal health.
1:23.7	And now here is our host and producer, Kendall Nelson.
1:30.2	What if one of the most nutrient-dense foods on earth still depends on a way of life that is physically grueling, deeply seasonal, and increasingly rare in the modern world?
1:41.3	And what can we learn from those who are still willing to live close to the rhythms
1:45.6	of nature, harvesting food directly from wild ecosystems rather than industrial supply chains?
1:52.6	Each summer, thousands of fishermen travel to Bristol Bay, Alaska, one of the last great
1:57.8	intact salmon fisheries on the planet, to take part in the harvest
2:01.6	that has sustained traditional cultures for generations. But behind the beautiful images of wild
	...

Please login to see the full transcript.

Previous episode | Next episode

Disclaimer: The podcast and artwork embedded on this page are from Weston A. Price Foundation, and are the property of its owner and not affiliated with or endorsed by Tapesearch.

Generated transcripts are the property of Weston A. Price Foundation and are distributed freely under the Fair Use doctrine. Transcripts generated by Tapesearch are not guaranteed to be accurate.