U.S. senators have reintroduced legislation to preemptively ban commercial octopus farming, claiming the species’ intelligence makes such practices cruel and inhumane.

“Octopus are smart, sentient creatures that have no business cooped up on commercial farms,” U.S. Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (D-Rhode Island) said in a statement. “I’m glad to reintroduce this bill with Senator [Lisa] Murkowski [R-Alaska] to ban this practice and keep octopus wild in our oceans. Congress should heed the call of over 100 leading ocean scientists from around the world and quickly pass our bill.”

Animal welfare organizations claim that octopus farming would require keeping octopus – which research has shown are social and sentient creatures with advanced problem-solving skills – in isolated cages. Last year, the journal Science published a letter signed by more than 100 scientists agreeing that octopus farming should be banned as it is inhumane.

“Science has shown that octopuses are sentient, emotionally complex animals, and the conditions required to farm them – crowded tanks and lack of stimulation – are inherently cruel and incompatible with their basic needs,” Animal Legal Defense Fund Legislative Affairs Manager Allison Ludtke said in a statement.

The states of Washington and California have already adopted their own commercial octopus farming bans, and New Jersey lawmakers are currently considering adopting a ban as well. However, the Opposing the Cultivation and Trade of Octopus Produced through Unethical Strategies (OCTOPUS) Act would negate the need for more state-level bans by prohibiting commercial farming at the federal level.

If adopted, the bill would prohibit commercial octopus farming within the U.S., prohibit the import of farmed octopus products, and require NOAA to collect data on octopus harvest methods.

“As Alaska’s fishermen navigate turbulent waters both locally and globally, I will continue to advocate tirelessly for our fisheries – the most sustainable, wild-caught fisheries in the world,” Murkowski said in a statement. “By closing the door on commercial octopus farming, this legislation not only helps sustain wild harvest opportunities for Alaska’s fishermen, it helps protect Alaska’s marine ecosystems.”

The legislation has been backed by the Animal Legal Defense Fund, Aquatic Life Institute, Animal Welfare Institute, Animal Rights Initiative, Association of Zoos and Aquariums, Born Free USA, Compassionate Action for Animals, Compassion in World Farming, Don’t Cage Our Oceans, Environmental Investigation Agency, Endangered Species Coalition, Farm Sanctuary, Friends of the Earth, Food & Water Watch, Global Federation of Animal Sanctuaries, Humane World for Animals/ Humane World Action Fund, International Fund for Animal Welfare, Inland Ocean Coalition, Mercy for Animals, PETA Foundation, Recirculating Farms Coalition, Social Compassion in Legislation, The Humane League, and World Animal Protection.

Whitehouse and Murkowski introduced similar legislation in 2024, but it was never taken up for a vote in the Senate.

Source - https://www.seafoodsource.com