MADRID, Spain – Spurred on by soaring demand for seafood, a Spanish company plans to open the first commercial octopus farm next year but as scientists discover more about the enigmatic animals some warn it could be an ethical and environmental disaster.
Two technicians in waders plucked a mature specimen into a bucket for transfer to a new enclosure, with five other octopuses. Between 2010 and 2019 the value of the global octopus trade ballooned to $2.72 billion from $1.30 billion, according to data from the United Nations Food and Agricultural Organisation, while landings only rose around 9% to 380,000 tons.However, previous efforts to farm octopus have struggled with high mortality, while attempts to breed wild-caught octopus ran into problems with aggression, cannibalism, and self-mutilation.
Any farming operation aiming for a high quality of life by approximating their natural habitat – solitary on the sea bed – would likely be too expensive to be profitable, he said. “If we want to continue consuming octopus we have to look for an alternative…because the fisheries have already reached their limit,” said Eduardo Almansa, a scientist at Spain’s Oceanography Institute, which developed the technology used by Nueva Pescanova.Half the seafood consumed by humans is farmed. The industry has traditionally pitched itself as a means of meeting consumer demand while alleviating pressure on fishing grounds, but ecologists say that obscures its true environmental toll.
Traditional octopus fishermen are also wary of the venture, worried it could push down prices and undermine their reputation for quality produce.