Aquaculture

Aquaculture Biosecurity and Fish Welfare

Disease outbreaks in aquaculture cause mass mortality and significant fish suffering. Biosecurity measures protect both welfare and production.

Key Facts

Disease is the leading cause of aquaculture losses globally, estimated at 10% of production value
Pathogens spread rapidly in high-density aquaculture systems
Biosecurity includes screening incoming stock, water treatment, and farm hygiene protocols
Vaccination programmes have greatly reduced antibiotic use in salmon farming
Early disease detection reduces the scale of outbreaks and associated suffering

Welfare Considerations

Fish experiencing disease suffer from pain, impaired function, and compromised immune responses. High stocking densities in aquaculture accelerate pathogen transmission, meaning individual disease quickly becomes population-level suffering. Robust biosecurity reduces outbreak frequency and severity. Prompt treatment and culling of severely affected fish before disease progresses is an important welfare consideration often neglected in production-focused systems.

What You Can Do

Support aquaculture certification schemes with strong biosecurity standards
Ask seafood retailers about antibiotic use policies in their supply chains
Advocate for mandatory disease reporting requirements in aquaculture regulations
Choose certified products from farms with vaccination rather than antibiotic programmes
Support research into fish disease prevention including novel vaccine development