Document type : written answer published in Journal officiel de la République française
Authors: question: Vincent Ledoux (Renaissance - Nord). Answer: Ministry of Agriculture and Food Sovereignty
Question: Mr. Vincent Ledoux draws the attention of the French Secretary of State for the Sea to the issue of the sentience and suffering of aquatic animals. Indeed, commercial fishing methods and tools involve the infliction of great suffering on fish. According to the Fondation Droit Animal, Éthique et Sciences (LFDA), some 695 million to 2.3 billion fish are killed on fishing boats in France every year. These boats are not subject to any animal protection regulations, controls or training, the NGOs tell us. Numerous scientific research projects are financed by the French government to perfect slaughter methods for land animals in order to reduce their suffering; this is why 76% of the French population are calling for greater consideration to be given to the suffering of aquatic animals as well. Furthermore, the French National Assembly, in its Resolution of November 1, 2020, officially asked the European Commission to "include in the European regulations for the Common Fisheries Policy, elements relating to the welfare of fish from commercial fishing, in particular, the recognition of the sentience of the animals that are caught, the requirement to avoid the inflicting of avoidable suffering on animals in the context of fishing, a ban on the use of sentient animals as live bait, and recommendations on limiting the suffering of animals in the context of fishing". He would therefore like to know the government's intentions regarding the implementation of measures to combat the suffering of aquatic animals, as well as the funding of a research program to reduce animal suffering in commercial fishing.
Answer: Improvements in the welfare of caught fish meet a strong expectation in current public opinion. They also guarantee the quality of the products offered to consumers. The question of the welfare of fish raised through aquaculture is included in the Plan Aquacultures d'Avenir presented on September 4, 2022 (P2A). Particular attention is also being paid to welfare in the making of fish products. We remind you of the stated aim of the P2A to "define a collective strategy for the sustainable development of French aquaculture by 2027", and that it includes animal welfare as one of the sector's major planned areas for action. Thus, "actions contributing to good ecological status, in particular nature restoration and conservation, ecosystem protection, biodiversity and fish health and welfare" feature among the specific objectives (SOs) of the European Maritime Affairs, Fisheries and Aquaculture Fund (EMFAF), which feeds into the French Aquaculture Plan. In addition, the platform for the "Welfare of Aquaculture Fish", co-led by FRCAW and the Comité Interprofessionnel des Produits de l'Aquaculture, is working to specify welfare indicators by species and by farming system. Work is also being carried out to objectivize the effects of stocking density and to evaluate slaughter methods. To further knowledge on this subject, the French Ministry of Ecological Transition and Territorial Cohesion, through the work of institutes it funds such as IFREMER and INRAE, is conducting numerous research projects on fish welfare. At European level, the welfare of farmed fish has already been the subject of two European Commission reports, in 2017 and 2018, and is more broadly integrated into the ongoing review of legislation on animal welfare announced in May 2020 as part of the "farm to fork" strategy. The Commission published an overview of the achievements and challenges of current animal welfare legislation on October 4, 2022, where it indeed records that "scientists have recognized fish as sentient beings". On the basis of these findings, it will be our job to lay the foundations for specific animal welfare regulations for fishing products, at both European and national level.
