Cruel treatment of trout discovered in Spanish fish farms

Spain is the largest producer of farmed fish in the EU, accounting for over 23% of production in 2023.

An estimated 254 million fish are farmed and slaughtered in Spain every year. The most commonly farmed fish species in Spain, the rainbow trout, accounts for over 30 million animals per year, yet is treated “as if they were merely a product.”

With the support of photojournalist Aitor Garmendia and videographer Linas Korta, the investigation captured footage of:

• Extreme overcrowding, with fish forced to swim in water filled with waste and to compete for space and oxygen.
• Sick and injured fish with damaged gills, torn fins, and abrasion injuries caused by rough handling and suction machines.
• Brutal slaughter methods, including the widespread use of thermal shock, in which live fish are submerged in ice or ice-cold water for up to 90 minutes, resulting in prolonged unconsciousness, hypothermia, and suffocation.
• Ineffective electrical stunning that results in fish being gutted alive, constituting a direct violation of applicable EU regulations against avoidable suffering.
• Aggravated stress during transport: poor water quality, oxygen deprivation, and impacts during loading and unloading make the final phase of the fishes’ lives a particularly traumatic experience.

Measuring the lives of living beings in tonnes is not merely a technical convention – it is a strategy to transform suffering into an anonymous commodity. Every fish is an individual that writhes in overcrowded nets, yet the industry erases them by counting carcasses rather than living beings. Every delay in legislation is a life sentence for creatures that deserve dignity. – Aïda Gascón, Director, AnimaNaturalis Spain

These cruelties are in clear violation of the EU Directive, which protects farmed animals, including fish, and obliges member states to ensure that farmed animals are not caused unnecessary pain, suffering or harm.

This critical situation demonstrates that stricter national and EU regulations are needed to ensure that species-specific provisions are implemented and enforced, and that they align with the latest scientific findings on the sentience and capacity for suffering of fish. Given the ongoing deliberations on the EU proposal on animal transport and the anticipated proposals for the animal husbandry and slaughter regulation, now is the time to act and ensure that farmed fish are afforded adequate protection.

The AnimaNaturalis campaign includes a citizens’ petition calling on the EU to finally grant fish the long-overdue legal protection they require.

In light of this serious evidence, the organisation calls on European authorities to immediately introduce binding requirements regarding space, effective stunning and official oversight in fish farms.

The investigation coincides with the drafting of the European Commission’s first code of conduct for fish welfare, which serves as a practical document for aquaculture producers on implementing best practices for fish welfare and applies to various life stages and production methods. This code is intended to fulfil the EU’s strategic aquaculture guidelines for 2030 and ensure that aquaculture in the EU develops in a sustainable and ethical manner.

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