Emerging Market for Ethically Sourced and Humanely Harvested Seafood
Scientific confirmation that fish experience intense pain for long periods after being caught is raising ethical concerns among consumers and observers. Many people agree with the findings, often seeing them as "obvious," and express disgust at common industry practices like suffocation. There's also a growing questioning of the ethics of recreational fishing, such as catch-and-release. Interestingly, some self-identified fishermen already recognize fish suffering and practice more humane dispatch methods. This increased awareness and ethical scrutiny create significant commercial and marketing opportunities.
Businesses can capitalize on this evolving sentiment by:
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Developing and Marketing Humane Fishing & Dispatch Equipment:
- Commercial: Innovate and supply equipment for rapid, humane stunning and killing of fish on commercial vessels (e.g., automated percussive stunning, electrical stunning systems) to replace slower methods like suffocation or CO2.
- Recreational: Design and promote improved fishing gear (e.g., barbless hooks, quick-release mechanisms) and humane dispatch tools (e.g., iki jime spikes, compact stunners) for anglers, along with educational material on their effective use and the ethical imperative.
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Creating and Promoting a "Humanely Harvested" or "Ethically Sourced Seafood" Certification Label:
- Establish clear, verifiable standards for humane capture, handling, and dispatch, addressing the specific concerns about prolonged suffering.
- This certification would appeal to ethically-driven consumers, potentially justifying premium pricing and differentiating products in a crowded market. It would directly counter the negative image of fish suffocating.
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Building Brand Identity Around Ethical and Humane Practices:
- Seafood brands, retailers, and even restaurants can differentiate themselves by transparently adopting and prominently marketing their commitment to humane harvesting methods.
- This includes educating consumers about the steps taken to minimize pain and suffering, thereby appealing to individuals reconsidering their seafood consumption due to ethical dilemmas. Highlighting improved taste from humane killing (as mentioned by some commenters) can be an additional selling point.
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Targeted Education and Product Lines for Recreational Anglers:
- Develop campaigns and products specifically for the recreational fishing community that address the ethical concerns around hooking pain and dispatch.
- Offer workshops, online resources, and endorsements from respected anglers on humane practices for both catch-and-release (minimizing harm) and for fish kept for consumption (quick, effective dispatch).
Origin Reddit Post
r/science
Scientists prove that fish suffer "intense pain" for at least 10 minutes after catch, calls made for reforms
Posted by u/Themusicison•06/10/2025
Top Comments
u/Pepe-es-inocente
How? With a knife?
u/one_pound_of_flesh
I went on a sport fishing excursion, and the fishermen were all diligent about landing killing blows on the fish as soon as we reeled them into the boat. It was violent but WAY more humane th
u/codemise
I'm all for limiting, reducing, and eliminating pain for animals intended for consumption.
But the science in this scientific article is seriously lacking.
Find a better source like when we
u/Godofthelazy
You would be surprised how many people actually believe fish don’t feel pain for whatever reason. I was told that so many times growing up, I never agreed with it though, which is why I hear
u/[deleted]
[removed]
u/DumbQuijote
Letting fish flop around the deck until they slowly die, like they do on commercial fishing boats, has never passed the eye test for me
u/Dixiehusker
I mean, we've basically proven cows have deep emotions and we're still doing what we do. Fish don't have a chance.
u/PM_Me_Some_Steamcode
My grandpa took me hunting and after I shot the deer, he went to go get the truck so I stood there for like 10 minutes, listening to this deer slowly losing breath and died in a few minutes
u/Godofthelazy
You would be surprised how many people actually believe fish don’t feel pain for whatever reason. I was told that so many times growing up, I never agreed with it though, which is why I hear
u/yourmominparticular
Catch and release folks enter the chat
u/one_pound_of_flesh
Circumcisions were often performed without anesthesia. The logic was, babies are always crying even when nothing is wrong, or I don’t know why they are crying. So they clearly aren’t paying a
u/Accomplished_Tax8238
Let’s be honest, there wouldn’t be reform even if this article was concrete. As sad as it is.
u/ThePrestigeSpoon
We already knew this, we know animals can feel pain.
We collectively decided it doesn't matter because we like to eat tasty things.
u/PM_Me_Some_Steamcode
My grandpa took me hunting and after I shot the deer, he went to go get the truck so I stood there for like 10 minutes, listening to this deer slowly losing breath and died in a few minutes
u/Godofthelazy
You would be surprised how many people actually believe fish don’t feel pain for whatever reason. I was told that so many times growing up, I never agreed with it though, which is why I hear
u/Dense-Version-5937
Thats way more fucked up than how we kill mammals and poultry :(
u/DumbQuijote
Letting fish flop around the deck until they slowly die, like they do on commercial fishing boats, has never passed the eye test for me
u/ThePrestigeSpoon
We already knew this, we know animals can feel pain.
We collectively decided it doesn't matter because we like to eat tasty things.
u/Top_Hair_8984
Cruel and horrible to watch a fish suffocating in front of you.
u/Beneficial_Garage_97
If fish & animals could feel pain it would make our society horrifically inhumane. Therefore, they must not feel pain. Science!
u/[deleted]
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u/Dixiehusker
I mean, we've basically proven cows have deep emotions and we're still doing what we do. Fish don't have a chance.
u/amalgam_reynolds
If stress hormones tasted delicious, we'd absolutely do it.
u/[deleted]
[removed]
u/Top_Hair_8984
Cruel and horrible to watch a fish suffocating in front of you.
u/No_Salad_68
I used to work in fish farming. Fish were harvested with a fish pump that sucks them up with water and then stuns them prior to separation from the water. They were then bled immediately.
I
u/[deleted]
[removed]
u/WesternOne9990
It’s wild because fish are so easy to humanely kill, and they taste better when done so.
u/DingleDangleTangle
Ooooh boy are you going to be upset when you learn about factory farming
u/[deleted]
[removed]
u/Dense-Version-5937
Thats way more fucked up than how we kill mammals and poultry :(
u/DingleDangleTangle
Ooooh boy are you going to be upset when you learn about factory farming
u/1stHalfTexasfan
It was, unfortunately, a bad shot. If a deer doesn't immediately die from the shot, if it has to run or suffer, the adrenaline and cortisol will damage the meat. A poor shot can fragment bone
u/Top_Hair_8984
Cruel and horrible to watch a fish suffocating in front of you.
u/one_pound_of_flesh
I went on a sport fishing excursion, and the fishermen were all diligent about landing killing blows on the fish as soon as we reeled them into the boat. It was violent but WAY more humane th
u/Dense-Version-5937
Thats way more fucked up than how we kill mammals and poultry :(
u/PhoenixAvenger
Pescatarians always weirded me out. Like, you won't eat meat because of animal cruelty, but the fact that all your food slowly suffocates to death is just a-okay with you?
u/glytxh
If something appears to be suffering, then it probably is.
I’d rather be wrong about that assumption and extend my empathy to things that aren’t suffering, than to dismiss suffering because
u/Dixiehusker
I mean, we've basically proven cows have deep emotions and we're still doing what we do. Fish don't have a chance.
u/codemise
I'm all for limiting, reducing, and eliminating pain for animals intended for consumption.
But the science in this scientific article is seriously lacking.
Find a better source like when we
u/ThePrestigeSpoon
We already knew this, we know animals can feel pain.
We collectively decided it doesn't matter because we like to eat tasty things.
u/ololcopter
The question isn't whether you're getting reaction to stimulus, it's what the nature of "pain" or "suffering" is in a given life form. If you cut a worm, it writhes or appears to writhe, but
u/amalgam_reynolds
If stress hormones tasted delicious, we'd absolutely do it.
u/No_Salad_68
I used to work in fish farming. Fish were harvested with a fish pump that sucks them up with water and then stuns them prior to separation from the water. They were then bled immediately.
I
u/WesternOne9990
It’s wild because fish are so easy to humanely kill, and they taste better when done so.
u/WesternOne9990
It’s wild because fish are so easy to humanely kill, and they taste better when done so.
u/ctothel
I’m getting ever closer to not being able to justify eating meat or fish.
u/EthanDC15
Lot of people here I guess don’t know many fishermen: we already speculated this. We’re not scientists so nobody listens, but literally ANY fisherman I know will not let a fish suffocate. Kil
u/WheatForWood
“One should kill fish as soon as possible”
Purely for the taste of course
u/Tormofon
Many years ago, I read about a Japanese study about this. They wanted to find out if fish were fresher (and hopefully tastier) if they were kept alive on the line and dragged home, or if the
u/WheatForWood
“One should kill fish as soon as possible”
Purely for the taste of course
u/glytxh
If something appears to be suffering, then it probably is.
I’d rather be wrong about that assumption and extend my empathy to things that aren’t suffering, than to dismiss suffering because
u/DingleDangleTangle
Ooooh boy are you going to be upset when you learn about factory farming
u/codemise
I'm all for limiting, reducing, and eliminating pain for animals intended for consumption.
But the science in this scientific article is seriously lacking.
Find a better source like when we
u/RustyPickles
Not all that long ago medical professionals believed that human babies don’t feel pain, and even performed procedures on them without anesthesia. It’s not surprising that people think fish do
u/Pepe-es-inocente
How? With a knife?
u/UnnecessaryScreech
So suffocating to death is painful. And people needed scientists to tell them that. Poor fish. I wish we would leave them alone.
u/1stHalfTexasfan
It was, unfortunately, a bad shot. If a deer doesn't immediately die from the shot, if it has to run or suffer, the adrenaline and cortisol will damage the meat. A poor shot can fragment bone
u/AcclimateToMind
A knife works, cut the gills to make them bleed out quick. But they're still suffering the whole time they're bleeding out. In my experience, hobby fishermen use something like a small club o
u/Accomplished_Tax8238
Let’s be honest, there wouldn’t be reform even if this article was concrete. As sad as it is.
u/tokeytime
I mean it seems pretty obvious. It's entirely clear a fish is in distress when out of water, and it clearly reacts to getting hooked...
I get that science is slow. But...would you hook your
u/Accomplished_Tax8238
Let’s be honest, there wouldn’t be reform even if this article was concrete. As sad as it is.
u/Tormofon
Many years ago, I read about a Japanese study about this. They wanted to find out if fish were fresher (and hopefully tastier) if they were kept alive on the line and dragged home, or if the
u/DumbQuijote
Letting fish flop around the deck until they slowly die, like they do on commercial fishing boats, has never passed the eye test for me
u/RustyPickles
Not all that long ago medical professionals believed that human babies don’t feel pain, and even performed procedures on them without anesthesia. It’s not surprising that people think fish do
u/dreamy_25
>I get that science is slow.
In this case, the scientific process wasn't the issue. It's the fact that respecting this fact in terms of animal welfare will cost some people money so shhh
u/one_pound_of_flesh
I went on a sport fishing excursion, and the fishermen were all diligent about landing killing blows on the fish as soon as we reeled them into the boat. It was violent but WAY more humane th
u/AcclimateToMind
A knife works, cut the gills to make them bleed out quick. But they're still suffering the whole time they're bleeding out. In my experience, hobby fishermen use something like a small club o
u/Pepe-es-inocente
How? With a knife?
u/[deleted]
[removed]
u/RustyPickles
Not all that long ago medical professionals believed that human babies don’t feel pain, and even performed procedures on them without anesthesia. It’s not surprising that people think fish do
u/salfiert
I almost feel like catch and release is as bad. Surely when we know fish feel pain we can assume hooking them is painful too.
Yeah they live, but Is it better to induce less pain just for f