A new poll from Mainstreet Research finds that
nearly 75 percent of British Columbia residents support an immediate ban on net-pen salmon farms, with almost one
in two residents saying they “strongly support an immediate ban.
This poll proves that BC residents don’t buy
the fishing industry’s lies. In fact, fewer than 25 percent of respondents
agreed that net-pen fish farms provided jobs and economic prosperity with
minimal environmental impact.
Tavish Campbell, a local activist with Wild
First, said:
Whether it is protecting resident killer whales that rely on wild salmon as a food supply (82%), protecting the local Grizzly Bear population (66%) or reconciliation with indigenous nations who rely on the coastal habitats as a food supply (63%), it’s clear BC residents support immediate action.
Last year Campbell released a truly disturbing
video showing what appeared to be a pipe releasing red waste from nearby fish
slaughter plants into BC’s coastal waters.
Additionally, recently shot undercover footage of salmon factory farms off Vancouver
Island revealed unimaginable horror: blind, emaciated salmon
swimming in their own feces. What’s more, a 17-year report discovered that sea
lice from one of the fish farms had been killing young wild salmon.
Factory farms are filthy and overcrowded,
making them perfect breeding grounds for parasites. In 2016 an outbreak of sea lice stretched from
Scandinavia to Chile. As a result, nearly half of Scotland’s salmon farms were
infested with the parasite, which feeds on blood, skin, and slime.
Salmon farming is not only filthy and
dangerous but incredibly cruel. According to a recent study published in the Journal of Experimental Biology, salmon bred and raised at fish factory farms
are forced to grow at such an accelerated rate that more than half of them go
partially deaf. Another study shows that farmed salmon suffer from severe depression.
Known as “drop outs, depressed salmon float lifelessly.
After their terrible lives at factory farms,
many fish face particularly gruesome deaths. Despite fishes’ capacity to feel pain, the seafood
industry treats these innocent beings as mere objects.
In 2011 Mercy For Animals conducted an
undercover investigation at a fish slaughter facility and exposed
fish being skinned alive. They thrashed and fought to escape the
workers’ knives. As the fish gasped for oxygen, workers ripped off their skin
with pliers.
Thankfully, you don’t need to wait for
governments to ban fish factory farming. You can withdraw your support from
this cruel industry by leaving fish and all animals off your plate and
switching to a compassionate vegan diet.
Ready to get started? Check out all the amazing vegan versions of seafood, such as
Gardein’s fishless filets and crabless
cakes. And click here for compassionate sea-inspired recipes.