Proposed octopus farming operations raise acute welfare concerns given that octopuses are highly intelligent, solitary, and likely capable of experiencing significant suffering in captive conditions.
Octopus farming represents a case where an industry may be developing faster than the welfare science needed to make it humane or even feasible. Octopuses are solitary predators that cannot thrive in the high-density conditions typical of aquaculture, and their cannibalism makes group housing extremely problematic. Their intelligence and likely capacity for rich experience means farming them could create significant suffering. Many welfare scientists and advocacy groups have called for a moratorium on octopus farming until these issues can be addressed.