Shrimp and fish farming in converted mangrove habitats destroys critical coastal ecosystems while creating welfare problems for farmed animals. Understanding this intersection of habitat loss and aquaculture welfare advances more complete advocacy.
Mangrove aquaculture welfare involves both the destruction of wild animal habitat through conversion and the welfare of farmed animals in the resulting facilities. Mangrove-converted shrimp farms typically have shorter productive lifespans and higher disease rates than inland farms, partly because the soil chemistry and water quality of converted mangrove land creates management challenges. The resulting disease and mortality events represent significant welfare harm to farmed shrimp. The wild welfare dimension is the habitat loss: mangroves that served as nursery and foraging habitat for wild fish and invertebrates are permanently converted. Certification that prohibits mangrove conversion, combined with welfare standards for farmed species, addresses both dimensions of this welfare and sustainability problem.