MADRID. Considered a great reference octopus in many countries of the world, 420,000 tons of this mollusk are caught annually. Its growing popularity is due great nutritional value and to reduce the remaining catches worldwide. To cope with the demand, the Spanish company Nueva Pescanova decided to create the first fish farm dedicated exclusively to octopuses in the Canary Islands, with the aim of producing 3,000 tons per year. Octopuses are able to increase their body weight by 5% every day, which makes them especially attractive to fish farmers, although their breeding in cages is considered very difficult.

The Spanish company, however, claims to be able to cope with the problems thanks to a scientific innovation that allows breeding Octopus vulgaris (also known as the Atlantic octopus). OUR rearing octopuses on fish farmsthe company claims will limit unsustainable fishing practices such as drift nets and provide a stable source of healthy food.

The company’s claims are disputed by environmental organizations, which point out that fish farms they pollute waters and affect local ecosystems. At the same time, ethical problems arise when keeping intelligent animals, such as octopuses, which are not adapted to life in conditions of keeping and mass reproduction.

Sudden death

Ethical problems arise when keeping intelligent animals that do not live in conditions of keeping and mass reproduction.

Scientists at Dartmouth University studied how octopuses perceive reality in the laboratory. Studies have shown that these animals feel pain. The Spanish company, for its part, plans to kill octopuses by submerging them in liquid nitrogen, claiming that death will be instantaneous. However, scientists explain that octopuses are able to process information, feel anxiety and fear, use simple tools, and process complex visual information. Industrial slaughter of cattle and pigs, which are usually killed in gas chambers or by electroshock, has been subject to similar criticism.

Some studies claim that the intelligence of an octopus is comparable to that of a cat. However, octopuses are not considered charismatic due to their almost alien appearance.

Despite compelling scientific evidence for the diversity of their emotional repertoire, attractive cephalopods have never been considered human companion animals or friends. As with other nutritional debates, there is no easy solution or compromise. Food production remains one of the greatest ethical issues of modern humanity. Despite promises of sustainability promoted by businesses like the Spanish one with fish farms in the Canary Islands, many animal species will continue to fall prey to human demand for cheap sources of protein.