New bill seeks to outlaw octopus farming across California
SACRAMENTO, Calif. – Assemblymember Steve Bennett introduced a new bill to prohibit octopus farming on land or in water as well as ban their import into California on Friday.
Assembly Bill 3162 would amend the state's Fish and Game Code to include a prohibition on aquaculture activity that involves the, "propagation, cultivation, maintenance, or harvest of any species of octopus for the purpose of human consumption."
“These highly functional creatures have captured our fascination for as long as we have been telling stories," explains Assemblymember Steve Bennett. “Octopuses are primarily solitary creatures that are not suited for large scale breeding. They have demonstrated an aptitude for learning and their acute intelligence is becoming well recorded among the scientific community. Outside the U.S., there is a growing trend of recognizing the sentience of this eight-legged cephalopod and the inappropriateness of captive breeding and harvesting it. AB 3162 will prevent needless, systemic harm to these captivating animals.”
Octopuses have notable cognitive abilities including the ability to learn new skills, navigate complex mazes, and even use tools detail the proposed legislation.
To wit, Inky the octopus successfully escaped from the National Aquarium of New Zealand making international headlines and an Oscar-winning documentary from 2021 brought the researched intellectual capabilities of the cephalopods to an even broader audience.
The proposed legislation is cosponsored by the Animal Legal Defense Fund and the Social Compassion in Legislation, both non-profit animal welfare organizations.
“This is a key moment, not only in California but around the country, in the effort to protect octopuses from the scale of suffering that other animals already endure on factory farms,” says Animal Legal Defense Fund Senior Legislative Affairs Manager Jennifer Hauge. “Californians have demonstrated their concern for the welfare of animals, and this bill is an opportunity to continue that commitment by leading on this issue with proactive legislation. We commend Assemblymember Bennett’s efforts to stop octopus farming in its tracks in California.”
Similar bills have been introduced in Washington state and Hawaii and the California version explicitly states that the bill would include land-based recirculating aquaculture systems in its prohibitions.
“Jurisdictions around the world, including California, are restricting or banning various forms of aquaculture due to its negative environmental impact and the risk of bacterial, viral, and parasitic infections in marine life,” says Judie Mancuso, Founder and President of Social Compassion in Legislation. “Factory farms are environmental disasters whether on land or in the water, and the cruelty inherent in their business model is unspeakable. Octopus aquaculture would be a harmful and truly inhumane practice, and AB 3162 will prevent it from getting established in our great state.”
