Aquaculture

Aquaculture Biosecurity: Disease Welfare Impact

Biosecurity in aquaculture prevents disease outbreaks that cause mass suffering and mortality in farmed fish, with welfare and economic consequences.

Key Facts

Infectious salmon anaemia (ISA) can cause mass mortality affecting entire sea cage operations
Biosecurity failures in Atlantic salmon farming have caused losses of hundreds of thousands of fish
Fallowing, controlled movements, and health certification reduce disease transfer between sites
Pandemic fish disease events involve prolonged suffering before mortality if untreated

Welfare Considerations

Disease prevention through biosecurity is a welfare imperative in aquaculture. Mass disease events cause extensive suffering for affected fish, often over extended periods. Investing in biosecurity is simultaneously a welfare and an economic priority.

What You Can Do

Support aquaculture producers demonstrating robust biosecurity programmes
Advocate for mandatory fallowing and site rotation in sea cage salmon regulation
Engage with research into fish disease prevention that reduces reliance on chemical treatments