Canned Trout/ Why Aren't they Processed for Humans?

Market Information:
After tuna, sardines are the most popular canned fish product in the United States [Johnson,
2001]. Fresh sardines are once again becoming popular in West Coast fish markets [Johnson,
2002]. However, consumer demand is still much reduced, compared to consumer demand for
sardines during the 1920s, 1930s, and 1940s [Wolf et al., 2001]. It appears that the collapse of
the fishery, coupled with the rising availability of fresh and fresh-frozen fish since 1950, has
limited the domestic market for canned sardine products [Wolf et al., 2001]. Currently, the
California Department of Fish and Game considers the sardine resource underutilized [Wolf et
al., 2001].
Most of the Pacific sardine now caught in U.S. fisheries is “low-value, high-volume” product
[PFMC,2003b] frozen and exported to Australia for feeding penned tuna [PFMC,2003b] or to
Japan for use as bait fish [Hill, 2003]. Some of the catch is also exported as frozen blocks to
Brazil and other nations, where the fish are canned and sold for local human consumption [Hill
2003; PFMC,2003b]. Much smaller amounts of sardine are taken for high-value markets,
including : live bait sold to recreational anglers; fresh fish for domestic consumption or import;
and fresh fish for use in domestic canneries

For instance, I once worked with a Korean girl who would on her break eat little dried fish, of the type that a few Americans would feed their dog.