The aquaculture industry hides behind its nets, cages, and tanks a reality of animal suffering so vast it defies comprehension and human decency. The study published by Cambridge University Press in February 2023, “Estimating global numbers of farmed fishes killed for food annually from 1990 to 2019”, confronts us with figures that should ring as a deafening alarm in the collective conscience. In 2019, an estimated 78 to 171 billion finned fish (with a chilling mean figure of 124 billion) were slaughtered in fish farms around the world. This number, already inconceivable in itself, dwarfs the already massive 80 billion land birds and mammals killed annually for human consumption and reveals a terrifying trend: production has increased ninefold since 1990. It is crucial to grasp the magnitude of this statistic: it does not include the enormous “mortality during rearing” – a euphemism for the fish that die prematurely due to poor conditions, disease, stress, or cannibalism – nor the millions of tons of wild-caught fish and those farmed specifically to be turned into fishmeal and fish oil, main ingredients in the diets of many farmed fish, perpetuating an unsustainable and ethically questionable cycle of exploitation.
Global finfish production in aquaculture has seen exponential growth, from a modest 9 million tons in 1990 to a colossal 56 million tons in 2019. Yet, here lies one of the keys to their invisibility and widespread indifference: this vast production is still quantified predominantly in terms of biomass (tons) instead of as individual animals. This practice starkly contrasts with the way farmed mammals and birds are counted, whose lives—though often equally tragic—are at least recognized numerically as individual units. This numerical depersonalization, this reduction of sentient beings to mere “raw material,” significantly contributes to the harmful perception of fish more as an inert “crop” than as individuals capable of feeling and suffering.
“Measuring sentient lives in tons is not just technical: it’s a strategy to turn suffering into anonymous commodity. Every fish is an individual agonizing in overcrowded nets, but the industry erases them by counting corpses, not living beings”, says Aïda Gascón, director of AnimaNaturalis in Spain.
Life inside an intensive fish farm is, for the overwhelming majority of these billions of animals, an unbroken chronicle of misery and deprivation from the moment they hatch until death. Extreme overcrowding is standard practice, with densities so high that any glimpse of natural behavior becomes impossible. Fish are forced to live in a “soup” of their own waste, fiercely competing for space and oxygen. This generates severe chronic stress, which weakens their immune systems and leaves them vulnerable to a myriad of bacterial, viral, and parasitic diseases. The infamous sea lice disease, for example, causes open wounds and atrocious suffering in salmon. To combat these system-induced diseases, the industry relies heavily on the prophylactic use of antibiotics and harsh chemicals, with serious consequences for public health (contributing to the antibiotic resistance crisis) and the surrounding environment.
Confined in these unnatural, overcrowded spaces, fish suffer constant aggression from equally stressed conspecifics, resulting in physical injuries such as bitten fins, damaged eyes, and open wounds that are rarely treated. Fins may painfully erode from constant friction against tank walls or cage nets. Hunger is also a constant for many, either due to prolonged fasting practices—sometimes lasting days or even weeks—before transport or slaughter to empty their intestines and reduce water contamination during these processes, or simply due to intense competition for food in tanks where weaker individuals stand little chance.
Water quality, a fundamental element for the life and welfare of fish just as air is for us, is often poor in these facilities. Low levels of dissolved oxygen (hypoxia), high concentrations of ammonia (a byproduct of their metabolic waste) and nitrites, and extreme temperature fluctuations are common problems causing acute respiratory distress, severe gill irritation, lethargy, and widespread physiological suffering. The complete lack of environmental enrichment in these sterile, monotonous tanks—devoid of any substrate, shelter, or stimulus that might resemble their natural habitat—deprives fish of any chance to express innate behaviors essential to their well-being, condemning them to a life of chronic boredom and apathy. Moreover, alarming data from the Sapience report reveals that most European citizens are unaware of many of these cruel realities: for instance, only 18% knew that most farmed salmon are deaf due to intensive breeding practices and rapid growth that deforms their auditory organs. 66% of respondents did not know that fish mortality rates during farming are substantially higher than those of terrestrial farm animals. And while 60% were aware of the common use of antibiotics, 42% did not know that typical farming systems prevent fish from exhibiting their full range of natural behaviors.
And when the end of their short, artificial, and miserable lives finally arrives, the picture often becomes even more horrifying. The vast majority of farmed fish in the European Union—and certainly worldwide—are slaughtered using methods that science has proven to be inhumane, causing prolonged and intense pain, fear, and distress. Only 39% of surveyed European citizens were aware that most farmed fish are not stunned (i.e., rendered unconscious) before being killed. Many die slowly from asphyxiation when taken out of the water, an agony that can last from several minutes to over an hour, depending on the species and its ability to breathe atmospheric oxygen. During this time, they struggle desperately, gasp, and suffer extreme physiological stress. Others are eviscerated (gutted) and bled out while still fully conscious. Practices such as ice baths (immersion in an ice and water mixture) or exposure to carbon dioxide in water, far from being humane, cause considerable and prolonged suffering before unconsciousness is induced—if it is even achieved before death by other means. Despite decades of conclusive scientific evidence that fish are sentient beings, capable of feeling pleasure, pain, fear, and other emotions analogous to mammals and birds, this fundamental reality is systematically ignored by a multibillion-dollar industry that prioritizes productive efficiency and economic gain over any shred of ethical consideration or compassion.
The study by Mood et al. (2023) highlights an alarming legal and regulatory void: it is estimated that between 70% and 72% of farmed fish worldwide have no specific legal protection ensuring their welfare at the critical moment of slaughter. Less than 1% of these animals benefit from any law that specifically considers them at this final stage of their lives. The lack of oversight and accountability allows the industry to continue using cruel slaughter methods without repercussions, in an atmosphere of impunity and opacity. This legal vacuum not only reflects the institutional disregard for these animals but also reveals the urgent need for legislative reform that explicitly recognizes fish as sentient beings deserving of protection.
Organizations advocating for animal rights are calling on governments, international institutions, and the aquaculture industry to adopt science-based standards that guarantee humane treatment for fish throughout their lives, including during slaughter. These include the mandatory use of effective stunning methods prior to slaughter, better water quality controls, significant reductions in stocking densities, and the prohibition of mutilations and prolonged fasting practices. Public awareness is also crucial: citizens must be informed of the reality hidden behind the "sustainable" and "healthy" image often used to promote farmed fish products. Informed consumers can demand transparency and animal welfare, influencing industry practices and public policies.
“We are witnessing the largest and most normalized mass suffering on the planet, hidden beneath the waters of fish farms”, concludes Gascón. “The time has come to acknowledge the lives of fish, to recognize their pain, and to act to end this invisible cruelty”.
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