Published on World Octopus Day, The Growing Threat of Carnivorous Aquaculture warns of the disastrous implications for the marine environment, animal welfare, and food security of octopus farming and the expansion of carnivorous aquaculture.

The world’s first octopus farm proposed by Spanish company Nueva Pescanova, could require up to 28,000 tonnes of wild-caught fish in its first year, whilst only producing 3,000 tonnes of octopus meat. This is the equivalent of two billion individual fish used for feed, growing to a staggering seven billion fish by 2040.

Often touted as a fix for rising seafood demand, carnivorous aquaculture (feed-dependent aquatic animal farming) is putting an unsustainable strain on already overexploited wild fish stocks, the report exposes, and its expansion is exacerbating the problem.  

Expanding the industry, by introducing new species such as octopus, will weaken the resilience of marine ecosystems and global food security, it further finds. Feed for farmed fish and octopus would be taken from vital forage fisheries in West Africa, South America, and Southeast Asia, posing a serious threat to local diets and livelihoods.

Key insights from the report include: 

Farmed octopuses could consume up to 90,700 tonnes of wild fish annually by 2040, the equivalent of 7 billion fish, further straining overfished stocks.
Carnivorous aquaculture in the EU is projected to grow 30% by 2040.
The demand for wild-caught fish in the EU could rise by 70% by 2040, to 2.5 million tonnes, up to 192 billion individual fish per year. 
Europe has added 78 new farmed species since 1985, 70% of them needing animal-based feeds.
Spain sourced fish feed from 26 countries in 2020 - the widest network in Europe.

 The report names the countries contributing most to this increasing problem. In Europe, Norway is the top aquaculture producer followed by the UK, Germany, Spain and Denmark. These countries were also amongst the top exporters of fishmeal and fish oil, as was the Netherlands.  

To coincide with the report, the animal welfare and environmental NGO released new undercover footage of the cruel slaughter method Nueva Pescanova plans to use in its proposed first octopus farm in Gran Canaria, Spain. The footage of wild-caught octopuses shows the animals suffering slow and agonising deaths by being forcibly submerged in icy water, taking at least ten minutes to die.

Threat of octopus farming and carnivorous aquaculture expansion