Aquaculture Feed Chains and Wild Fish Welfare Impacts

The reliance of carnivorous aquaculture species on wild-caught fishmeal and fish oil creates welfare impacts for billions of small pelagic fish caught for feed production.

Key Facts

Approximately 20 million tonnes of small pelagic fish including anchovies, herring, and sardines are caught annually for fishmeal and oil
Wild fish caught for reduction to fishmeal are not individually stunned before processing and die by suffocation or crushing
Feed conversion ratios in salmon farming require roughly 1-1.5 kg of wild fish to produce 1 kg of farmed salmon
Alternative protein sources including insect meal, algae, and single-cell proteins are being scaled as fishmeal substitutes
The Fish Reduction Index calculates the net fish biomass impact of aquaculture production accounting for feed inputs
Some aquaculture certification schemes include fishmeal sourcing requirements but coverage of welfare in capture is limited
Small pelagic fish support major predator populations including seabirds, marine mammals, and larger fish species
Omega-3 from algae directly grown can replace fish oil while eliminating the wildlife capture welfare impact

Welfare Considerations

The welfare impact of aquaculture extends far beyond the farmed species themselves to encompass the billions of wild small fish caught annually to feed carnivorous farmed species. These fish die by suffocation or crushing in the reduction process without any welfare consideration. The scale of this hidden welfare impact is enormous: for every salmon welfare improvement achieved through better farming practice, the welfare cost embedded in the feed supply chain may dwarf it in terms of individual animals affected. The development of alternative protein sources that replace fishmeal and fish oil is therefore a significant welfare advance as well as an environmental one. Consumer choices and certification scheme requirements that incentivise lower-fishmeal feeds accelerate this transition and reduce aggregate wild fish welfare harm.

What You Can Do

Choose aquaculture products from suppliers using low-fishmeal or alternative-protein feeds where available
Support certification schemes that include feed sourcing requirements for aquaculture products
Advocate for welfare standards to be extended to cover wild fish caught in reduction fisheries
Support research into algae, insect, and single-cell protein alternatives to fishmeal and fish oil
Reduce consumption of high-fishmeal species like salmon in favour of herbivorous aquaculture species like tilapia or carp