Aquaculture’s Hidden Victims

Aquaculture is often presented as the sustainable future of food production, but beneath its surface lies a grim reality of exploitation and ecological destruction. Far from the benign image it promotes, fish farming perpetuates severe injustice against wild and farmed fishes alike, systematically treating these animals as mere commodities.

Contrary to common belief, farmed fish are deeply connected to wild marine eecosystems - through exploitation. Recent research exposes that aquaculture’s reliance on wild-caught fishes for feed has been grossly underestimated. Wild fishes are violently caught, ground into fishmeal and fish oil, and fed to captive fishes, perpetuating a cycle of exploitation and ecological harm. The ratio of wild fish inputs to farmed fish outputs (FI:FO) is actually between 0.36 and 1.15 - up to 307% higher than previously reported figures. When mortality from capture processes, such as "slipping" (fish dying after escaping nets), is included and unfed systems excluded, this ratio skyrockets to between 0.57 and 1.78.

A glaring issue deliberately ignored is the use of so-called "fish trimmings," often misleadingly labeled as byproducts. Around 66% of these come directly from wild-caught fishes, and even whole fishes are falsely categorised as "byproducts" if not the primary catch, obscuring the true scale of wild-fish exploitation.

The industry's touted shift from marine-based to terrestrial-based feeds doesn't solve the problem - it merely relocates it, imposing massive environmental burdens on terrestrial ecosystems instead. Between 1997 and 2017, terrestrial feed crops used by aquaculture surged by 468%, vastly outpacing the industry's growth. This has drastically increased pressures on land use, water resources, and biodiversity, proving aquaculture is far from the sustainable practice it claims to be.

Species farmed for consumption suffer profoundly, regardless of feed source. Herbivorous fish farming requires vast land and water resources, while carnivorous species, such as salmon and trout, intensify wild fish exploitation, requiring between 1.86 and 6.24 pounds of wild fish per pound of farmed salmon produced. This reveals aquaculture’s inherent inefficiency, contradicting claims it enhances global food security and highlighting the exploitation and commodification at its core.

Current sustainability certifications and assessments vastly underestimate aquaculture's environmental and ethical harms, reflecting a dangerously narrow view. Transparent disclosure of practices and genuine accountability must replace current voluntary standards, ensuring accurate, ethical assessments.

Advocates and policymakers must urgently reconsider supporting aquaculture expansion. Comprehensive evaluations considering marine, terrestrial, and ethical impacts are essential. Sustainability narratives have ignored severe animal welfare issues, including profound suffering caused by captivity, overcrowding, and unnatural living conditions.

It's time to confront the uncomfortable truth: aquaculture is inherently exploitative, treating sentient fishes as mere property, ignoring their intrinsic right to freedom and life. Real sustainability cannot coexist with systemic injustice. Only by dismantling practices rooted in exploitation and embracing plant-based solutions can we truly move towards a just, ethical, and sustainable food future.

Source:

Roberts, S., Jacquet, J., Majluf, P., & Hayek, M. N. (2024). Feeding global aquaculture. Science Advances, 10(42), eadn9698. https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.adn9698