Latest news with #OCTOPUSAct
Time of India
06-07-2025
- Science
- Time of India
Should humans industrialize creatures that can feel and suffer? Spain's octopus farm reignites debate and faces global backlash
With about 500 million neurons, Octopuses are considered among the most intelligent animals on Earth. However, a Spanish company's plan to open the world's first commercial octopus farm has triggered global outrage, with scientists, lawmakers, and activists calling it a disturbing step backward in animal welfare and environmental ethics. Nueva Pescanova , a prominent Spanish seafood firm, has proposed farming octopuses at an industrial scale in the Canary Islands to offset declining wild populations. They argue this would meet growing demand and reduce pressure on wild stocks. Also Read: Pacific Sleeper Sharks queue up to feed on cow in South China Sea; first-ever footage captures rare deep sea behavior by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like When the Camera Clicked at the Worst Possible Time Read More But the project has sparked widespread condemnation for attempting to mass-produce one of the ocean's most intelligent and least understood creatures. Live Events Are Octopuses fit for farming? Octopuses possess about 500 million neurons throughout the body. About two-thirds are in their arms, called mini-brains, giving each limb semi-independent control, which has stunned neuroscientists and animal behaviorists alike. The rest are in the doughnut-shaped brain, which is wrapped around the oesophagus and located in the octopus's head. Social media videos showed Octopuses unscrewing lids to escape tanks and even showing individual preferences. It would be controversial to imagine animals with this creative level being raised for slaughter and human consumption, but octopuses are consumed in most parts of the world, too. Many argue that octopuses are too sentient to be farmed at an industrial scale due to their complex intelligence and emotional behavior. The slaughter method Nueva Pescanova's method of killing, immersing live octopuses in ice slurry, has been widely condemned. Dr. Peter Tse, a cognitive neuroscientist, called the technique 'unacceptable,' pointing out that the method causes a slow and painful death. In addition, the company plans to keep 10 to 15 octopuses per cubic meter despite the animals being naturally solitary, raising concerns about aggression and cannibalism in such cramped conditions. The legality The backlash has already prompted political action. Washington state has banned octopus farming . US senators Lisa Murkowski and Sheldon Whitehouse have introduced the OCTOPUS Act , aiming to outlaw it nationwide and block imports of farm-raised octopus. In Spain, protests have erupted in Madrid, and growing pressure is mounting on the European Union to halt the farm's approval process, especially given the UK's legal recognition of octopus sentience in its Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act. Environmental dilemma Nueva Pescanova argues the farm will help preserve wild populations, but critics disagree. Octopuses are carnivores, meaning they must be fed large quantities of fish, worsening the strain on already depleted marine stocks. 'This doesn't reduce pressure on oceans,' said one marine ecologist. 'It shifts the burden elsewhere in the food chain.' The debate goes beyond animal farming to a deeper ethical question: should humans industrialize creatures that can think, feel, and suffer? Cultural phenomena like My Octopus Teacher have further reshaped public perception, portraying octopuses as emotional and trusting beings unsuitable for farming.
Axios
12-03-2025
- Politics
- Axios
Octopus farming in NC? A bill was filed banning it
A leading environmental voice in the North Carolina House has introduced a bill to outlaw octopus farming for human consumption. Why it matters: Farming and keeping captive one of the most intelligent species is inhumane, critics say, and could harm the coastal ecosystem. Yes, but: North Carolina has no octopus farms or known plans for any. In fact, no commercial octopus farm exists in the world. So, why file such a bill? Driving the news: Congress and several states are considering similar legislation in response to international research on breeding octopuses. All the bills are intended to prevent such operations from opening in the U.S. Seafood company Nueva Pescanova is seeking permits to build the world's first commercial octopus farm, with tanks on a dock, in Spain's Canary Islands, NPR reported. Washington and California were the first states to pass bans in 2024, while the OCTOPUS Act has been introduced in Congress. Similar state legislation has been filed in New Jersey, Hawaii and Oregon. The North Carolina bill has already caught the attention of other top state legislators — but not in a good way. "While we're trying to deliver 90 million dollars in Corn Relief to NC farmers. The Democrats are worried about banning Octopus farming in NC," House Majority Leader Rep. Brenden Jones posted on X. Rep. Pricey Harrison, the bill's sponsor, says she doesn't expect the bill to advance while the legislature is focused on Hurricane Helene recovery and other pressing issues. But she still filed the legislation to raise awareness of a potential threat to the coast. "We tend to be a reactionary legislature," Harrison tells Axios. "But it's always best if you can get in front of an issue rather than be reacting to an issue." What's inside: House Bill 293, as drafted, would also prohibit the transport of any otopuseses that are the result or product of aquaculture into North Carolina. The legislation would exempt wild-caught octopuses and those "propagated, cultivated, maintained, reared, or harvested" only for research. Mecklenburg County Rep. Mary Belk is one of several Democrats who have joined to sponsor the bill. Threat level: Critics of octopus farming say the operations would strain natural resources, as the carnivorous creatures demand more fishing to accommodate their large protein diet. An estimated three pounds of wild-caught fish are necessary to raise one pound of farmed octopus, NPR reports. Environmental activists worry octopus farming would require the intensification of crabbing in North Carolina, where the blue crab population is shrinking. "It would be so ecologically devastating to not only wildlife, but also local fishermen and crabbers that are relying on clean water," says Amanda Fox, executive director of the Animal Rights Initiative. Beyond the adverse environmental effects, ethical concerns are often raised about confining cognitive octopuses in tanks or nets. Octopuses are smart enough to open jars, solve problems and are master escape artists. Some suggest the method of slaughtering an octopus — plunging them into an ice slurry — is also too cruel. The other side: Nueva Pescanova claims, according to NPR, that raising octopus on a farm helps meet a growing global demand for octopus meat while easing fishing pressure. In Oregon, the farm bureau argues the bill would set "a concerning precedent" of restricting agriculture of an entire genus of animal without "clear, science-based justification," Oregon Live reported.
