A recent article in the Washington Post reveals the dangers of overfishing as exposed in a study released by the California Environmental Associates. The study estimates that “over 40 percent of fisheries have crashed or are overfished”–a much higher number than previously reported. These new figures include estimates from unmonitored fish stocks, with those numbers accounting for 80% of the global fish population.
The article points out that it’s the lack of government oversight that’s endangering the world’s aquatic life and our ecosystem.
Apart from destroying the environment and endangering the world’s fish population, the fishing industry contributes to some of the most horrific animal abuse in agribusiness. Industrialized fishing victimizes not only fish, but also countless unintended victims, including dolphins, lobsters, and turtles. Sea animals captured in huge trawling nets undergo excruciatingly painful decompression as they are raised from the ocean depths. The intense internal pressure ruptures fishes’ swim bladders, pops out their eyes, and pushes their stomachs through their mouths.
An MFA undercover investigation at a Texas fish slaughter facility revealed shocking cruelty, including workers cutting, slicing, skinning, suffocating, and dismembering live and fully conscious catfish–a brutal practice harshly condemned by veterinarians.
Thankfully, knowledgeable consumers can easily help prevent needless cruelty to animals by transitioning to a sustainable plant-based diet.
Click here for your free Vegetarian Starter Kit.
