World's first octopus farm sparks ethical debate
STORY: The world's first commercial octopus farm plans to open in 2023
It’s sparked an ethical debate and fear for a local fisherman
who fears he won’t be able to compete with industrial farming
(SOUNDBITE) (Spanish) FISHERMAN, PEDRO LUIS CERVINO FERNANDEZ, 49, SAYING:
"Big companies just want to look after their bottom line...and they want to toss small companies like us in the bin."
Spanish company Nueva Pescanova is pouring $74 million into the farm
and plans to build it on the island of Gran Canaria
building on decades of research to perfect conditions for industrial-scale breeding
Previous efforts to farm octopus have struggled with high mortality
Nueva Pescanova says optimizing tank conditions has eliminated these issues
But not everyone is convinced
London School of Economics researchers concluded that octopuses are sentient beings
capable of experiencing distress and happiness
and that high-welfare farming would be impossible
Experts say any octopus farming operation would likely be too expensive to be profitable
if it aimed to guarantee high quality of life by approximating natural habitat
