Despite proliferating aquaculture certification schemes, significant welfare gaps remain. Identifying what current standards miss helps direct advocacy for stronger protections for farmed fish.
The proliferation of aquaculture certifications has outpaced their welfare content. Consumers paying premium prices for certified fish are often getting environmental assurance with minimal welfare protection. The welfare gaps in current certifications — lack of behavioral assessment, no pain management requirements, density standards not grounded in welfare science — represent known problems with known solutions that the certification industry has been slow to address. Building pressure on certification bodies to strengthen welfare provisions, and preferring certifications with genuine welfare content over those with primarily environmental focus, creates market signals for meaningful reform.