Source: SAFE For Animals
SAFE is condemning the Government’s $11.72 million investment into salmon farming and demanding an urgent review into endemic animal welfare breaches.
SAFE Campaign Manager Emily Hall says the funding allocated via the Ministry for Primary Industries (MPI) is a concerning misdirection of Government resources.
“Fish farms are quite simply under water factory farms, and this is an unregulated industry with no meaningful oversight of animal welfare.”
SAFE also warns that intensive fish farming poses serious environmental risks including declining water quality and antibiotic pollution, making this use of Government sustainability funding profoundly misguided.
“Rather than channelling money from the Sustainable Food and Fibres Futures fund
into the expansion of salmon farming, this funding should be directed to initiatives with genuine sustainability outcomes.”
SAFE says all fishes confined to cages on land or at sea are prevented from exhibiting their normal patterns of behaviour, directly breaching their legal rights under the Animal Welfare Act, adding the National Animal Welfare Advisory Committee (NAWAC) is well overdue in producing a code of welfare for farmed fishes.
“Codes of welfare are ratified guidelines which all animal-related industries are expected to abide by, however a code to ensure the fish farming industry operates in line with our Animal Welfare Act has not yet transpired” says Hall.
SAFE says this week’s funding announcement also highlights a significant conflict of interest, with MPI being responsible for both the growth of intensive farming industries and animal welfare compliance.
“The fishes bred in these underwater cages subject to terrible conditions, including overcrowding, poor water quality, skeletal deformities, skin lesions, and heat stress.”
“It is deeply concerning to see MPI dishing out funding to an industry rife with animal welfare concerns, given they are responsible for monitoring the welfare of farmed animals.”
SAFE is calling for an immediate halt on all fish farm expansion until the Government has conducted a thorough review of what is currently an unregulated industry.
“Without urgent action, fishes will continue to suffer in tragic conditions with no meaningful protection. The Government must step up and fix this” says Hall.
