Animal Equality infiltrates tilapia farms for the first time in Mexico and discover the suffering of these animals at the hands of aquaculture due to the lack of laws protecting them from cruelty.
In Mexico, according to the National Agency for Health, Safety and Quality of Agricultural Products of the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development, there are no “Official Mexican Standards or other regulations governing the hygienic processing of for meat, fish and other aquatic animals”. And the National Commission on Fisheries and Aquaculture (CONAPESCA) claims that they let them die of suffocation in the water despite evidence that the fish feel pain.
Our investigators have captured shocking scenes that reveal heinous activities, including:
- juveniles are handled roughly, killed by the weight of others and, like females, discarded because they are not considered economically profitable;
- up to 400 kg of fish are packed into the same barrel and pounded together;
- Cannibalism: On one of the farms, the operators mentioned that the fish hadn’t been fed for at least 6 months, so they started eating each other;
- how injured fish are thrown in the trash or used as food for other animals;
- witnessed the scene of fish older than 2-4 years old being left on the floor to suffocate;
- Transfer fish from one tank to another over a period of 6-8 hours, during which time they keep the fish so low in oxygen, direct sunlight, and water that they can barely change position. or move around.
Killed while fully conscious
In addition to the poor sanitation and hygiene conditions under which fish are forced to live on the farms investigated, it is common practice in the industry for them to be killed without being stunned. On just one farm, they managed to do so using ice, but with an unsuitable method that only prolongs the stress and suffering of these sensitive animals.
Likewise, their internal organs were removed while they were still conscious, and even then, some showed signs of life such as opening their mouths, expanding their gills, and contorting.
Fish feeling
According to Dr Lynne Sneddon, Director of Biological Sciences at the University of Liverpool, fish suffer from pain to the same extent as mammals. And behaviorally, they also exhibit some of the same traits as mammals: forming relationships, remembering their own actions, making decisions (i.e. assessing risks and benefits). , emotional expression (experiencing positive and negative emotional states) and also some degree of consciousness.
Despite this evidence, fish have no legal protection in Mexico. In fact, the Federal Veterinary Law doesn’t even recognize them as animals, and the standards that establish methods of transporting, stun, and slaughter do not apply to them.
Activities that apply to fish for breeding and consumption would be illegal if they were used with land animals such as cows and pigs, but they are practiced regularly and there are no laws. prevent this.
Dulce Ramirez, Director of Igualdad Animals Mexico
Unlike other countries where there are laws that do not allow fish to be cruelly treated, in Mexico there are no fish welfare regulations, no mandatory and voluntary certification. Leaving fish in the hands of people who are not properly trained or trained in the specific needs of the species means greater suffering for these animals.
Even if we can’t hear their groans and pain calls, the fish clearly feel pain and don’t want to suffer.
Please support our investigations educate consumers and help change animal laws.
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