Send a letter to the port authority of Las Palmas
In May 2021, the company Nueva Pescanova applied to the Port Authority of Las Palmas for permission to build the world’s first ever commercial octopus farm. This farm would create immense suffering for these animals including serious risks of injury, aggression, and even cannibalism.
The Port Authority asked for a full environmental impact assessment because the octopus farm's potential environmental risks are significant. Five years later, the company still haven’t been able to provide the detailed environmental impact assessment. As a result, the deadline for the application to obtain a port license to install the octopus farm has passed, and the application must now be closed by law.
If thousands of us write to the Port Authority, they won’t be able to ignore our request much longer.
Dear Beatriz Calzada Ojeda,
I am writing to express my strong opposition to Nueva Pescanova’s application to establish the world’s first octopus farm in the Port of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria.
Octopus farming would cause serious and unjustifiable animal suffering. Octopuses are highly intelligent, sentient animals with complex behavioural needs and a largely solitary nature, making captivity in tanks incompatible with their welfare. Moreover, there is currently no specific legislation protecting octopuses in farming systems, nor are there any scientifically validated humane slaughter methods, raising serious ethical concerns.
The project would also have significant environmental impacts. As carnivores, octopuses require feed made from wild‑caught fish, increasing pressure on already overexploited marine ecosystems. Locally, the farm could cause water pollution, harm protected species such as cetaceans and sea turtles, and generate a high energy footprint.
In 2023, the Canary Islands Government required a full environmental impact assessment due to these risks. However, Nueva Pescanova failed to submit this assessment, allowing the deadline for its port concession application to expire. Under Article 95.1 of Law 39/2015, the Port Authority is therefore obliged to declare the application expired.
For these reasons, I urge you to formally close this application without delay.
