Fish Welfare Initiative
in China
China has immense potential for better fish welfare policies and sustainable farming.
>56%
of the world's farmed fishes are reared in China.
19.2
million acres
of land is used to farm fishes in China, almost identical to the size of Scotland.
Why China?
Multiple leverage points exist for fish welfare implementation to grow within the world’s largest aquaculture producer.
Shared Policy Goals
The foundations of good fish welfare are already embedded in existing national priorities, including the revised Fisheries Law, already call for scientific stocking densities, clean water and stronger disease prevention.
Innovation Driven
From offshore farming vessels to sensor networks and AI-assisted monitoring, Chinese aquaculture is adopting new technology at speed. These tools make it easier than ever to track and improve conditions for fish at scale.
Built to Scale Fast
As a strategic national industry, Chinese aquaculture connects government, research institutes, industry associations and farms closely. Practical solutions that prove themselves can spread quickly across the world’s largest aquaculture sector.
Fish Welfare Initiative has been engaging with Chinese stakeholders since 2020. Below are our highlights from our work:
Partnership with the International Cooperation Committee of Animal Welfare (ICCAW).
Published China's first industry report on fish welfare with ICCAW.
Co-hosting of the first Aquatic Animal Welfare Forum at the World Conference on Farm Animal Welfare (WCFAW).
Identification of two priority species for welfare interventions.
Launched a fish stress platform with local partners to run 8 weekly livestreams covering oxidative and heat stress, nutrition and metabolism.
China's first fish welfare industry report, co-published with ICCAW.
Pictures from the Field
Fish welfare is gaining momentum in China.
As aquatic animal welfare is a relatively new research topic worldwide, including in China, we are directing our work towards enhancing industry coordination and generating field-relevant evidence.
If you have thoughts or want to get involved in our projects in China, please reach out.