Aquaculture and Fish Welfare

Farmed Salmon Welfare: Environmental Enrichment

Salmon in net cages live in relatively featureless environments. Provision of environmental enrichment including light, current variation and structural complexity can improve welfare.

Key Facts

Salmon in barren net cages show reduced welfare indicators compared to those with environmental variation
Current variation in net pens encourages natural rheotactic swimming behaviour
Submerged lights attract prey species and encourage natural hunting behaviour at night
Submersible cage designs expose fish to natural variation in light, temperature and current
Cognitive enrichment for salmon is a nascent field with growing evidence base

Welfare Considerations

Environmental enrichment for farmed salmon is an emerging welfare frontier. As evidence accumulates that salmon have complex welfare needs, providing environmental variation represents a progressive welfare intervention.

What You Can Do

Support aquaculture research into salmon environmental enrichment
Advocate for enrichment requirements in future salmon welfare certification standards
Choose certified salmon from operations investing in fish welfare research