Atlantic and Pacific bluefin tuna farming raises profound welfare questions given their biology as highly migratory, open-ocean predators requiring enormous space and speed.
Bluefin tuna welfare in aquaculture raises fundamental questions about whether these animals can experience adequate welfare in any current commercial farming system. As highly migratory, open-ocean pelagic fish adapted to continuous high-speed swimming across ocean basins, their behavioral and physiological needs are profoundly incompatible with cage confinement. Crowding-induced stress, inability to maintain swimming speed for optimal ram ventilation, and the absence of natural migration cues all compromise welfare. The wild capture of juvenile southern bluefin for grow-out represents additional welfare concerns around the capture process and transport in tow cages. Given the profound welfare challenges and the high ecological footprint of bluefin farming, reduction in bluefin consumption is among the most impactful individual actions available.