Pangasius catfish farming in Vietnam is a major global seafood industry facing welfare challenges from intensive stocking densities, water quality management, and long-distance live transport.
Pangasius welfare in Vietnamese aquaculture receives minimal international attention despite the scale of production and evidence of welfare-relevant stress responses in the species. The high tolerance of pangasius for challenging conditions is sometimes used to justify production practices that would be unacceptable for salmon or trout, but tolerance of stress does not equate to absence of suffering. Water quality management, stocking density, and transport welfare improvements are technically feasible and would benefit both fish welfare and product quality. Consumer demand routed through certification schemes that incorporate welfare indicators could drive meaningful improvement in this globally significant sector.