Fish welfare certification is lagging far behind mammal and poultry welfare standards despite fish being the most numerically significant farmed vertebrates. Closing this gap is a major welfare priority.
The welfare certification gap for fish represents one of the most significant missed opportunities in global animal welfare. Billions more fish are farmed annually than all other vertebrates combined, yet the welfare standards governing their lives and deaths are rudimentary compared to those for pigs or chickens. Building robust, evidence-based fish welfare certification that covers stocking density, water quality, disease management, and slaughter method across commercially important species is an urgent priority. Supporting organisations building this evidence base and certification infrastructure creates the conditions for welfare improvement at extraordinary scale.