PROJECTS OVERVIEW

New Book Coming Soon!

Understanding Our Underwater Cousins:
An Aquatic Animal Activity Book

Welfare of the second-most farmed group of fishes in the world

An overview of operational welfare indicators for farmed Nile tilapia

Why should we care about the welfare of aquatic animals?

Promoting Aquatic Animal Welfare: A Vital Perspective for Africa

Social Entrepreneurship & Investment

Tanganyika Blue tilapia farming project

ESR is proud to be a partner in the first sustainable and ethical Tanganyika tilapia farm in Tanzania. This project has huge potential to set the tone for sustainable aquaculture before it develops and to deliver food security, employment and community development to the least affluent part of Tanzania.

HIGHLIGHTED PROJECTS

Mapping the status quo of Nile tilapia farming practices in Egypt

Egypt is one of the largest producers of Nile tilapia around the world with production primarily carried out in vast earthen ponds. However, there are currently no considerations for the welfare of the animals in these systems. This initiative aimed to address this gap by mapping current production practices and identifying the major points of compromised welfare along the production chain. These findings have subsequently informed a project around the introduction of humane slaughter methods, which, if successful, would mark a historic step for animal welfare in Egypt.

Improving the welfare of sturgeon farmed for caviar production

Having gone from being a niche luxury product to one that is easily found in supermarkets, the demand for caviar has skyrocketed. With the decline of wild stocks of sturgeon and global restrictions on fishing them from the wild, the caviar production sector has turned to aquaculture to meet this demand. However, the welfare of these unique, long-living animals is poorly understood. The shift to nonlethal egg harvesting, considered ethically superior, brings its own welfare concerns. Our review delves into these complexities, underlining the urgent need for extensive research in this field.

Assessing the welfare of farmed bluefin tuna in closed culture systems

As the demand for sashimi-grade tuna continues to soar and closed cycle production becomes increasingly common, our interest in understanding the conditions of bluefin tuna farming grows. Through preliminary research, our team has uncovered major welfare concerns, including high mortality rates in hatcheries and uncertainties surrounding the humane slaughter of smaller tuna. Ethical Seafood Research goal is to collaborate with industry stakeholders to tackle these pressing challenges and pave the way for more sustainable practices in tuna aquaculture.

Identifying high welfare interventions in the Kenyan aquaculture sector

This project addresses sustainability challenges in Kenya's growing tilapia aquaculture through the introduction of an animal welfare approach. By engaging small-scale fish farmers through a series of hands-on workshops and demonstrating the value of sound animal care and husbandry practices, we are gently nudging the sector towards higher welfare and humane fish farming practices.

Drafting a humane and sustainable aquaculture strategy for Zanzibar

ESR is working together with the Zanzibari Ministry of Blue Economy to develop a humane and sustainable strategy for aquaculture development in this part of Tanzania. Zanzibar is a leader in seaweed farming and the island is keen to move into finfish production. By embedding animal welfare principles from the start, we can position Zanzibar as an African leader in humane and sustainable aquaculture.

Pioneering high welfare tilapia farming in Western Tanzania

We are proud to collaborate as a partner in the first sustainable and ethical Tanganyika tilapia farm in Tanzania, marking a significant milestone in aquaculture development. This project has huge potential to set the tone for sustainable and humane aquaculture before the sector takes off in the region whilst delivering food security, employment and community development to the least affluent part of Tanzania.

Reports/Outputs

Aquatic Animal Welfare in Africa

This factsheet enshrines the shared view of the African Union-InterAfrican Bureau for Animal Resources (AU-IBAR) and Ethical Seafood Research (ESR) regarding the welfare of aquatic animals. Taking into account the contents of key AU-IBAR guiding documents relating to aquatic animals including the Policy Framework and Reform Strategy and the Animal Welfare Strategy, this factsheet encompasses all uses of aquatic animals in Africa with a primary focus on capture fisheries and aquaculture.

Farming Tuna on Land Heralded as a Win for Sustainability

Historically, Atlantic bluefins have either been caught directly from the ocean or caught while young and fattened in large offshore cages called “ranches”. Both wild fishing and ranching pose sustainability issues since they involve taking fish from the wild. The surge in demand resulted in excessive fishing pressure. By 2006, the International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas warned that the Atlantic bluefin stock was close to collapse.

Animal Advocacy in Egypt

Our report is based on insights gathered from desk-based research, supplemented by interviews (phone-based and written) with stakeholders in Egypt's animal advocacy landscape. We hope this report will be a valuable resource for groups seeking to conduct high-impact animal advocacy in Egypt, particularly international organisations that may not have a nuanced understanding of the local context.