Octopus is a popular food eaten by people all over the world. More than 350,000 tonnes of octopus are caught each year, usually using pots, lines and underwater traps. Nueva Pescanova, a Spanish company, says octopus farms would help to stop the animals from being overfished in the wild. However, many people say farming octopuses is cruel, especially because they are known to be intelligent and playful creatures. “In experiments they’ve solved mazes and completed tricky tasks to get food rewards,” said Jon Ablett, an octopus expert at the Natural History Museum, London. Some studies suggest octopuses are as smart as cats, which are pets and not food in most countries. So, what do you think? Would it be wrong to breed them to eat?
Yes – it’s cruel and unnecessary
Research shows octopuses are sentient (capable of feeling and having some awareness). They also mostly prefer to live alone in dark dens. Critics of farming say it’s cruel to keep these solitary and intelligent creatures grouped in tanks. Activists have also said that farming octopuses requires catching lots of wild fish to use as feed. Besides, these farms might be unnecessary in countries where there are lots of wild octopuses. A Government study said that last year in south-west England, 65 times more octopuses were caught than during an average year. Scientist Bryce Stewart told the BBC that warmer seas have created ideal conditions for octopuses in the UK. If they’re so common, we don’t need to farm them.
No – it’s a reliable supply of food
Octopus meat is a healthy food that is full of vitamins and minerals. Supporters of octopus farming say it would help to satisfy a growing demand without taking wild animals out of their natural habitat in the ocean, which could affect other species. In Europe, cephalopods (a group that includes octopus, squid and cuttlefish) are not protected by fishing quotas – there is no maximum number that can be legally caught each year. As the world’s human population grows, some argue that these types of farms could help to feed people. Some people say it doesn’t make sense to be against octopus farming while supporting other types of animal farming. Pigs are intelligent but humans farm and eat them – so why not octopuses?
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