Three recirculating aquaculture system (RAS) fish farm projects in France are facing mounting public opposition, led by animal welfare NGO Welfarm and marine conservation NGO Seastemik.
Metz, France-based Welfarm, a partner of the larger Eurogroup for Animals and World Federation for Animals groups, initiated an oppositional campaign in April 2023, and Seastemik, a French organization founded in 2023 with a focus on eliminating commercial salmon farming, have launched a petition that has collected 58,432 signatures through 21 August, calling for a law prohibiting the construction of land-based farms in France “until the welfare of the salmon is guaranteed.”
“Farms that are using entirely RAS are a source of great suffering for fish because of several issues: extreme densities, which are necessary to achieve a return on investments; risks of mass-mortality events, with the survival of salmon depending on the system’s equipment’s state of function; tough living conditions, with this farming system imply[ing] risks for the welfare and health of salmon, notably complications in controlling the water quality and its levels of pathogens,” Welfarm said in a statement sent to SeafoodSource. “Therefore, Welfarm asks for a pure and simple ban to these projects of hyper-intensive salmon farms.”
Welfarm Farm Animal Welfare Officer Gautier Riberolles said his organization also opposes the high levels of water and energy usage necessary to operate RAS farms, and the carbon emissions they create. He said Welfarm also takes issue with “the slaughter of millions of wild fish to produce fishmeal and fish oil to feed the [salmon].”
“Reduction fisheries entail numerous issues relating to animal welfare, the environment, and social justice,” he told SeafoodSource in a statement. “Irrespective of farming system, we also criticize the principle of increasing our national farmed fish production dramatically with a carnivorous species. Farming carnivorous species comes with animal welfare issues as wild fish caught for reduction fisheries are slaughtered without stunning. Reduction fisheries also come with environmental and social justice concerns. And, aquafeed with a high proportion of plant-based ingredients are not completely satisfactory as they can negatively impact the welfare of carnivorous fish and contribute to deforestation.”
Riberolles said Welfarm is seeking to ban all RAS construction in France until four conditions are met: that their fish welfare and environmental be assessed by public bodies, especially to ensure compatibility with national sustainable development and climate neutrality goals; that regulations are introduced to limit stocking density to European Union Organic certification standards and set high water-quality parameters; that RAS farms be banned from operated in protected areas; and that the government develops a national plan to reduce the use of fishmeal and fish oil imported from reduction fisheries.
“[We] are asking for a moratorium to be put into place regarding new fish, crustacean, and cephalopod farms for human consumption in which the totality of grow-out is conducted in a RAS farm. Banning the development of new such farms would encourage better animal welfare and would assist French aquaculture in meeting its sustainable development and climate transition goals,” Riberolles said.
There are three active RAS projects in various stages of development in France. Smart Salmon’s farm in Plouisy, Local Ocean’s project in in Boulogne-sur-Mer, and Pure Salmon’s RAS farm in Verdon-sur-Mer. Together, if completed as planned, the three farms will have combined production of ...
