Gilthead sea bream is one of the most important farmed fish in the Mediterranean. Welfare challenges include crowding stress, skeletal deformities, and variable slaughter practices.
Sea bream welfare reflects the broader challenges of Mediterranean aquaculture where regulatory standards are less comprehensive than in northern Europe. Skeletal deformities — particularly spinal curvatures and jaw deformities — are a welfare indicator pointing to problems in hatchery conditions, nutrition, or genetics; affected fish cannot swim or feed normally, constituting ongoing suffering. Crowding stress during grow-out in sea cages is significant, and pre-slaughter practices including CO2 narcosis or live icing raise welfare concerns. The economic pressure of intense price competition in Mediterranean aquaculture creates incentives that work against welfare investment. Greek and Spanish producers have made progress on welfare standards, and EU aquaculture welfare frameworks are beginning to apply more broadly. Consumer demand for welfare-certified Mediterranean fish can drive further improvement.