Fish Welfare
Fish are the most farmed and caught animals in the world – yet they are also the most overlooked when it comes to animal welfare, especially in Africa.
At ICARE-FISH, we are passionate about changing this.
Why Fish Welfare Matters
Fish Are Sentient Beings
Scientific research now confirms what many have long suspected: fish can feel pain, experience stress, and display complex behaviours like learning, cooperation, and social bonding. They are not simple, insentient creatures—they are living beings capable of suffering.
Ignoring their welfare is both a scientific and moral failure.
The Numbers Are Staggering
Over 100 billion farmed fish and up to 2.7 trillion wild fish are killed globally every year – far more than any other group of animals. In Africa, fish are a major source of food and income, but welfare practices remain largely unregulated and invisible in most policy frameworks.
Millions of fish endure inhumane slaughter without stunning, overcrowded and poorly oxygenated tanks, rough handling during capture and transport, and stressful environmental conditions.
Welfare Is a Justice Issue
Fish are sentient but voiceless in our food systems. They cannot cry out or resist – and that makes it our responsibility to reduce their suffering.
Just as welfare is important for chickens, cows, and pigs, fish deserve compassion and ethical treatment too.
Welfare Links to Sustainability
Fish welfare isn’t just about ethics – it also improves survival rates and growth in aquaculture, water quality and resource efficiency, consumer safety and food security, as well as the environmental impact of fishing and farming.
When fish are treated well, ecosystems and communities benefit too.
Africa Is at a Turning Point
As aquaculture intensifies and demand for fish rises, we have a choice:
Continue expanding systems that ignore welfare or embed humane, sustainable practices now, before suffering becomes systemic
ICARE-FISH is working to ensure Africa chooses the second path. By integrating fish welfare into policy, farming, education, and public discourse, we can build a more compassionate and responsible future.
It’s Time to Act
Fish have long been forgotten in welfare and conservation. ICARE-FISH exists to change that.
Because fish matter.
Baseline Study
As a clear example of the scale of the fish welfare challenges across Africa, our recent research uncovers the urgent need for improved awareness.
