19-07-2025
Record entire killing process of farmed Salmon on CCTV, guidance says
Britain's biggest animal welfare charity has called for a ban on suffocating farmed salmon to be enshrined in law.
The RSPCA has welcomed new Scottish government guidance designed to make the slaughter of 55 million fish a year more humane.
But the charity wants legislators in Holyrood and Westminster to make the new rules — which also recommend pre-stunning salmon and recording the entire killing process on CCTV — legally binding.
Sean Black, the senior scientific officer of aquaculture at the RSPCA, said: 'Ultimately protecting all salmon can only be achieved by mandatory rather than voluntary standards put in place further to protect salmon welfare.'
He added: 'We believe that issuing guidance does not go far enough and urge the Scottish government to do something more meaningful and introduce legislation to protect salmon at the time of slaughter.
'Nevertheless, we're pleased that our pioneering standards have been influential in developing the Scottish government's own guidance on this issue. Whilst our standards cover over 70 per cent of farmed Scottish salmon, we wish to see all farmed salmon have this protection, so this guidance is a big step forward.
'Sadly there is no detailed or specific legislation to protect farmed fish including at the time of killing and, for too long, there has been a reliance on voluntary schemes such as the RSPCA Assured scheme, which has detailed requirements to better safeguard fish welfare at all stages of their lives.'
Some animal rights campaigners have said that the RSPCA's seal of approval has been used as a cover for what they regard as cruel practices in fish farming.
The new guidance comes after scientists discovered that fish — including salmon — are sentient and can feel pain and distress. For much of human history the main way of killing fish was to take them out of the water, asphyxiating them. This is now regarded as inhumane. RSPCA wants it legally banned.
The charity also wants a requirement that equipment used in slaughter facilities is fit for purpose, that all staff are trained and competent, and all phases are covered by CCTV.
Other animal welfare organisations have also urged the Scottish government to legalise the guidance, warning that without enforcement, the measures may not be respected.
Dr Iain Berrill, the technical head of Salmon Scotland, said: 'Scottish salmon farmers already meet the highest animal health and welfare standards anywhere on the globe.
'All farm-raised Scottish salmon are stunned and slaughtered in seconds, in harvest stations that are independently certified and covered by CCTV to ensure that the highest humane slaughter standards are met or exceeded.
'We've worked closely with the Scottish government to develop this guidance and would be happy to work with Scottish ministers to ensure any future legislation in this area is appropriate to our sector.'
