Welfare data collection, reporting, and transparency in aquaculture are essential for tracking improvement and enabling consumer and market accountability.
Aquaculture welfare transparency is a prerequisite for accountability and improvement. Without farm-level welfare data being collected, reported, and publicly available, it is impossible to track whether conditions are improving, identify farms with poor welfare records, or verify certification claims. Mortality rate is the most basic welfare indicator — high mortality reflects conditions incompatible with fish welfare — and should be a mandatory reporting requirement for all licensed aquaculture operations. More sophisticated welfare data including behaviour monitoring, water quality, disease incidence, and treatment records provides a more complete welfare picture.