NPR

Do You Care If Your Fish Dinner Was Raised Humanely? Animal Advocates Say You Should

Concerns over animal welfare have led to changes in how livestock are raised in recent years. But seafood has been missing from the conversation. One group aims to change that.
Fresh fish fillets for sale in a display case. Concerns over animal welfare have led to changes in how livestock are raised in recent years. But seafood has been missing from the conversation. One group aims to change that.

At some point or another, we've all cringed at the videos: lame cows struggling to stand; egg-laying hens squeezed into small, stacked cages; hogs confined to gestation crates, unable to walk or turn.

Over the last decade, animal advocates have made great strides informing us of some of the problems with how many of our favorite proteins are raised. They've also made progress bringing change to the industry by pressuring large-scale retailers — from Target to McDonald's — to commit to sourcing livestock raised with higher welfare standards. But one important protein source has almost entirely been missing from the conversation: seafood.

Mercy for Animals, a U.S.-based animal welfare group, says that's about to change. The group says it is beginning to lay the groundwork for a campaign that will target the aquaculture industry and shine a light on the conditions in which finfish like salmon, tilapia, catfish, trout, pangasius and other species are raised.

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