Shocking Video Exposes Cruel Salmon Farming in Scotland
Shocking video footage shows salmon in abysmal conditions suffering from various diseases, infections, and injuries on farms in Scotland.
The footage, obtained by the organisation Scottish Salmon Watch, was shot on three salmon farms on the west coast of Scotland in July and August this year. It reveals that farmed salmon are confined in appalling conditions, causing them – as well as “cleaner fish” and shoals of wild fish that swim into the cages – to suffer from ailments such as deformities and lice infestations.
The three salmon farms shown – Quarry Point in Loch Fyne, Dalnaha in Loch Spelve, and Scallastle Bay in the Sound of Mull – are all believed to be certified by the “RSPCA Assured” welfare scheme.
The lice-infested farmed salmon from Scottish Sea Farms’ Loch Spelve site were sold exclusively via Marks & Spencer’s fake Lochmuir brand.
The footage quashes industry marketing claims that Scottish salmon farming is “high-welfare” or “sustainable” and shows the gruesome reality of the way animals are treated by those who see them as “products” and nothing else.
Salmon and other fish are smart and most certainly feel pain. Scientists who study pain are in agreement that fish’s pain-response systems are basically identical to those of mammals and birds. Imagine the agony that these salmon must have endured, swimming in their own faeces, denied anything and everything that’s natural and important to them.
This is the same misery felt by any living being who is killed to be eaten.
The only way to end this suffering is to go vegan.
More Reasons to Leave Animals off Our Plates
Eating fish can be extremely hazardous to human health. The fish observed in Scotland were deformed, diseased, and infested, but even the flesh of apparently healthy fish can contain hidden health risks. Sure, no one wants a mouthful of sea lice or bloody sores, but what about arsenic, mercury, dioxins, or lead? How about PCBs, the synthetic chemicals that pollute water and concentrate in fish flesh? Did you know that your salmon could come with a side of cancer-causing toxins?
These hazards aren’t limited to farmed salmon from Scotland – they can be present in fish raised or caught anywhere in the world by any method. But keeping them out of your food is simple – just keep fish (and all animals) off your plate.
