Plans are underway for the world’s first industrial octopus farm to open in the port of Las Palmas in Gran Canaria. Led by Spanish multinational seafood company Nueva Pescanova, farmed octopus products could soon appear on the market. Given the severe ethical and environmental implications of octopus farming, we call on Spanish and EU authorities to prohibit octopus farming across Europe.
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What is the current situation?
The Spanish company Nueva Pescanova has announced plans to establish the world’s first large-scale octopus farm in Gran Canaria, aiming to bring octopus meat to market swiftly. Despite claiming that this project will relieve pressure on wild octopus populations and generate employment, these benefits are contested. While awaiting approval from Canary Islands authorities, Nueva Pescanova obtained a patent in March 2021 for breeding the common octopus (Octopus vulgaris).
Why is octopus farming unethical?
Octopuses are remarkably intelligent and possess complex nervous systems that allow them to learn, solve problems, and even use tools. Research shows they can experience pain and suffering and need space and mental enrichment, which industrial farming conditions cannot offer. Nevertheless, the EU has yet to take significant steps to ban octopus farming, leaving the ethical implications of such practices unaddressed.
Why is it harmful to the environment?
As carnivores, octopuses require large quantities of fish and crustaceans, so farming them would intensify demand for these resources, contributing to overfishing and harming marine ecosystems. Additionally, octopus farms would likely produce pollution from chemicals such as fertilizers, algaecides, and disinfectants. Overcrowding on these farms could also promote disease, with antibiotics used to control outbreaks potentially impacting nearby aquatic environments.
‘Not only is factory farming the biggest cause of animal cruelty on the planet, it is damaging our planet through pollution, wildlife loss and emissions. We must act now before we eat our way to extinction’, Dr Elena Lara writes.
Dr Elena Lara is Senior Research and Public Affairs Advisor (Aquatic Animals) at Compassion in World Farming.