Gilthead seabream is the second most farmed finfish species in Mediterranean Europe, with welfare challenges in sea cage systems including ectoparasites, crowding, and slaughter practices.
Gilthead seabream in intensive Mediterranean sea cages experience welfare challenges from parasite burdens, crowding stress, and handling operations. As shoaling fish, they form dominance hierarchies in cage conditions that cause persistent aggression and stress in subordinate individuals. The absence of EU-wide mandatory pre-slaughter stunning means most seabream are killed by ice slurry immersion while fully conscious, causing distress that may persist for 30 minutes.