Wild Salmon Welfare and Commercial Fisheries

Wild salmon are among the most commercially valuable fish globally, but the welfare impacts of hook-and-line fishing, netting, and bycatch interactions raise important questions about the suffering involved in their capture and death.

Key Facts

Atlantic salmon populations have declined by over 70% since the 1970s due to habitat loss, overfishing, and climate change
Commercial netting of salmon involves prolonged stress, exhaustion, and asphyxiation that can last minutes to hours
Hook-and-line fishing causes acute pain from hook penetration; catch-and-release fishing leaves survivors with physiological stress lasting hours
Bycatch of non-target species in salmon fisheries includes sea trout, protected species, and juvenile fish
Pacific salmon species such as sockeye have better conservation status in some populations but face similar welfare questions in commercial harvest

Welfare Considerations

Wild salmon welfare in commercial fisheries intersects with conservation — protecting populations from overfishing also protects individual fish from fishery-related mortality and suffering. Rapid slaughter methods that minimise post-capture conscious survival are available and should be standard. Catch-and-release fishing for sport, while reducing mortality, does not eliminate welfare harm and should be accompanied by best-practice handling including barbless hooks and minimal air exposure.

What You Can Do

Choose wild salmon from certified sustainable fisheries with documented bycatch reduction practices
If fishing recreationally for salmon, use barbless hooks and minimise air exposure time for catch-and-release
Support salmon river restoration programmes that improve habitat and reduce the pressure for intensive commercial harvesting
Advocate for rapid on-vessel slaughter methods to reduce conscious suffering time in commercial salmon fisheries