Sign this petition

The Science is clear.

Fish are sentient beings, they can feel pain, fear but also positive emotions. They can solve complex problems and form social connections with one another.

Decision makers keep ignoring the welfare needs of aquatic animals

Even though fish have been recognised as sentient beings by the EU since 2009, the EU has not yet adopted rules to protect aquatic animals in fish farms or at the time of slaughter. In 2023, the European Commission was meant to publish a comprehensive reform of the EU animal welfare legislation but failed to deliver on that promise. Instead it only published a proposal to better protect animals during transport that covers fish and other aquatic animals but nothing to protect them on-farm or to guarantee humane slaughter.

Now, the Commission is preparing new legislation that completely ignores fish and other aquatic animals.

No protection leads to unnecessary suffering.

For many years, we have documented how the lack of specific welfare legislation leads to suffering for hundreds of millions of aquatic animals in the EU. Our latest investigation in Czechia shows how carp are injured, handled without care, transported in poor conditions, kept outside of water for prolonged periods of time and are even sometimes sold live to consumers who keep them in their bathtub before slaughtering them with kitchenware.

This cannot last

We need to show politicians that citizens care for aquatic animals and that fish must be protected from unnecessary suffering too. We need to put an end to cruel practices and adopt science-based and enforceable legislation to protect aquatic animals.