State Senate passes octopus farming ban bill
SACRAMENTO — The California Senate has passed Assembly Bill 3162 36-0, a groundbreaking measure that would ban the farming and sale of farmed octopus meat in the state.
The bill, which follows the world’s first ban on octopus farming enacted in Washington State earlier this year, now heads to Governor Newsom’s desk for final approval. When signed into law, California will become the second state in the U.S. to prohibit the commercial farming of these intelligent and sentient creatures.
AB 3162 also includes a critical provision that rejects the import of commercially farmed octopus, ensuring that California’s stance against octopus farming extends beyond its borders.
Animal Rights Initiative (ARI), the pioneering organization behind the successful passage of the Washington ban, played a pivotal role in the development and promotion of AB 3162. ARI supplied research fact sheets and testimonials to key local agencies, including the Animal Legal Defense Fund (ALDF) and Social Compassion in Legislation, in November 2023 to help get this bill introduced.
Amanda Fox, Executive Director of ARI, testified in favor of the bill during the committee hearing in April this year, along with Tessa Gonzalez of Aquatic Life institute. In her testimony, Fox highlighted the scientific evidence against octopus farming, stating:
“A compilation of over 300 studies finds octopuses to be highly intelligent, complex, sentient creatures with an exceptional capacity to feel pain and comprehend suffering, concluding that high-welfare farming of them is not possible.”
Fox also addressed the environmental risks associated with octopus farming: “Requiring three pounds of crab and fish to produce one pound of octopus, crabbing would need to intensify, killing millions more animals per year.
The vast amount of waste generated from such a voracious diet will inevitably cause algal blooms and dead zones in the water, suffocating local wildlife to death.”
She also stated: “California officials have ended the crabbing season early the last two years in a row, imposing new regulations to protect humpback whales and other endangered species from being caught in crabbing gear,” highlighting that octopus farming operations would intensify crabbing and cause further harm to the state’s biodiversity.
In closing, Fox emphasized the broader implications of the bill: “California will be resounding to the world that the ethical treatment of animals and biosecurity are not compromisable.”
Animal Rights Initiative — dedicated to conserving natural biodiversity and ending animal suffering — is also spearheading similar legislative efforts in Hawaii and is working with several more states to introduce comparable bills later this year.
ARI, that works to protect animals in captivity, factory farms, and breeding mills, believes that continuing to advance state-level legislation will build momentum for the federal ban on octopus farming.