Factfile

Relatively few scientific studies have looked at the issue of fish welfare, possibly because many branches of the aquaculture industry are relatively new.

There is still an ongoing debate about the extent to which fish can feel pain and suffer. However, we believe, based on the available scientific evidence, that fish probably do have the mental capacity to feel pain and suffer and that their welfare should be safeguarded in the same way as any other farmed animal.

There is increasing evidence that fish in general are more intelligent than many people think. In scientific studies, it has been shown that many fish species have good memories, are capable of learning and remembering fairly complicated tasks, and can even learn from the actions of other fish.

Farmed Atlantic salmon
Salmon are ‘anadromous’, which means that, in the wild, they are born in freshwater, migrate to seawater and then return to freshwater again to spawn.

In a farmed situation, the cycle starts with the egg and progresses through several maturing stages (eggs, alevins, fry, parr, smolts, grilse and adult salmon) over a period of around two to three years.

The process of ‘smoltification’ is when the freshwater fish change their physiology and behaviour to allow them to survive in seawater. Fish are transported from freshwater to seawater, and are slaughtered before they become motivated to migrate back to freshwater. Further information about the lifecycle of farmed Atlantic salmon is available on our fish farming information page.

We’re working in a number of different ways to try to improve the lives of as many farmed fish as possible.