Land-based aquaculture systems offer potential welfare advantages over sea cage production. Understanding these systems helps evaluate welfare progress in the sector.
Land-based aquaculture systems offer genuine welfare advantages over marine cage production in several respects: the absence of sea lice, elimination of predation stress, and the possibility of more precise water quality management. However, these advantages are not automatic — poorly managed land systems with inadequate aeration, high stocking density, or water quality failures cause significant welfare harm. The welfare comparison between well-managed land systems and well-managed sea cages is not straightforward, and both can achieve acceptable welfare outcomes with appropriate investment and management. The welfare case for land-based RAS specifically — where water quality can be continuously optimised — is strongest, but the technology remains expensive and energy-intensive, limiting its adoption.