Atlantic cod aquaculture in recirculating systems faces specific welfare challenges including light manipulation, crowding stress, and pre-slaughter handling.
Farmed cod face welfare challenges rooted in a mismatch between natural behavior and intensive RAS conditions. As demersal (bottom-dwelling) fish, cod experience distress when unable to access structured substrate areas, yet most RAS tanks offer smooth, undifferentiated bottoms. Crowding during harvest procedures and air exposure before slaughter are significant acute welfare concerns. The industry has begun adopting pre-slaughter electrical stunning based on salmon welfare research, but cod-specific stunning parameters are still being optimized. Long-term, improving cod welfare in RAS requires tank design that accommodates bottom-seeking behavior, reduced photoperiod manipulation, and mandatory effective stunning before slaughter.