02:32Spain: 'Friends not food' - Animal rights activists in Barcelona rally against world’s first industrial octopus farm
Activists gathered in Barcelona on Sunday for a demonstration against the opening of the world’s first industrial octopus farm in Spain.
The demonstration featured two activists laying under fishing nets while around a dozen others held signs with slogans such as, 'Octopuses are friends not food' and 'Stop the octopus farm'.
“Scientifically, octopuses are intelligent animals and they feel a lot. We want to give this information to people, to convey an empathetic message and put them in the octopus' shoes," an activist said.
“Octopuses are nocturnal animals, and on the farm, they will be under artificial light 24 hours a day. Many of them will be dead before being sold, and some of them will be cannibalistic," she added.
The demonstration was organised to coincide with 'World Day for the End of Fishing' (WODEF), which was created in 2017 by an animal rights group from Switzerland.
Spanish seafood supplier 'Nueva Pescanova' is reported to be investing 58 million euros ($63 million) into the world’s only industrial-scale octopus farm, which is located in Las Palmas on the Canary Islands. The farm will allegedly be able to produce 3,000 tonnes of octopus per year.
Currently, EU animal welfare regulations do not cover octopuses and other invertebrates, despite their intelligence. In the UK, the marine creatures are considered 'honorary vertebrates' and are protected by law.
02:32Activists gathered in Barcelona on Sunday for a demonstration against the opening of the world’s first industrial octopus farm in Spain.
The demonstration featured two activists laying under fishing nets while around a dozen others held signs with slogans such as, 'Octopuses are friends not food' and 'Stop the octopus farm'.
“Scientifically, octopuses are intelligent animals and they feel a lot. We want to give this information to people, to convey an empathetic message and put them in the octopus' shoes," an activist said.
“Octopuses are nocturnal animals, and on the farm, they will be under artificial light 24 hours a day. Many of them will be dead before being sold, and some of them will be cannibalistic," she added.
The demonstration was organised to coincide with 'World Day for the End of Fishing' (WODEF), which was created in 2017 by an animal rights group from Switzerland.
Spanish seafood supplier 'Nueva Pescanova' is reported to be investing 58 million euros ($63 million) into the world’s only industrial-scale octopus farm, which is located in Las Palmas on the Canary Islands. The farm will allegedly be able to produce 3,000 tonnes of octopus per year.
Currently, EU animal welfare regulations do not cover octopuses and other invertebrates, despite their intelligence. In the UK, the marine creatures are considered 'honorary vertebrates' and are protected by law.