Ethical Seafood Research

We're excited to work together to help drive meaningful change for aquatic animals in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and to promote responsible production practices across the region, as intensification quickly takes root.

#EthicalSeafoodResearch #NAPCOAQUA #SustainableAquaculture #SaudiArabia

We also look forward to bringing in our close partners from FAI, Murilo Quintiliano, Sara Barrento and Øistein Thorsen, on coordinated training initiatives.

As part of this partnership, ESR will provide technical expertise on aquatic animal welfare, training systems, welfare monitoring and applied research, supporting NAPCO AQUA’s team in integrating evidence-based welfare practices within their operations and throughout their sites.

Together, ESR and NAPCO AQUA will collaborate to:

→ Promote responsible, welfare-conscious aquaculture practices.
→ Strengthen professional training and knowledge transfer.
→ Support alignment with international sustainability and welfare standards.
→ Advance applied research and innovation.

Embedding animal welfare within Saudi Arabia’s aquaculture sector. 🐟

We’re pleased to announce our latest strategic partnership with NAPCO AQUA, a leading solutions provider supporting the development of responsible fish farming across the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the wider MENA region.

🎁 Grand prize: ESR hoodie
🎁 Second prize: ESR t-shirt
🎁 Third prize: ESR cap or a copy of the “Underwater Explorers & Rescuers: Colouring & Activity Book”

🔗 Enter now: buff.ly/WKbXrlq

‼️ T&Cs apply.
🗓️ Competition closes Friday 20th March.

#EthicalSeafoodResearch #AnimalWelfareCommunity

Wear your values with ESR! 🐟

At Ethical Seafood Research, we believe change happens when passionate people show up and speak out. That’s why we’re giving our community the chance to WIN one of three prizes.

As global seafood consumption rises, animal welfare in both fisheries and aquaculture remains largely out of public view.

Watch the full episode on YouTube or listen now on Apple Podcasts or Spotify.

🔗 buff.ly/OZv6aQU

#ScienceForChange #HowToProtectTheOcean #FishWelfare #Aquaculture

If fish can feel pain and stress, what responsibility do we have when we farm and eat them?

ESR Director, Wasseem Emam, recently joined Andrew Lewin on the How to Protect the Ocean podcast to explore what ‘ethical seafood’ really means.

Better identification means better data. And better data underpins better decisions: for ecosystems, for fisheries, and ultimately for animal welfare.

🔗 Read more: buff.ly/9CSyoU6

#ArtificialIntelligence #FishWelfare

For organisations like ourselves, non-invasive monitoring tools such as passive acoustics strengthen our ability to assess biodiversity and evaluate ecosystem health without disturbing the animals themselves - supporting more evidence-based and welfare-conscious environmental management.

Can AI help identify different fish species based purely on sound? 🐟

Biologists @uvic.ca have developed a machine learning model capable of identifying fish vocalisations with 88% accuracy - opening new possibilities for how we track and monitor fish populations in the wild.

And this year, you can help us spread that love by voting for Ethical Seafood Research in @projectforawesome.com.

Because, this Valentine’s Day, love isn’t just something we say. It’s something we do.

🔗 Vote now: buff.ly/tNQsChD

#ProjectForAwesome2026 #AquaticAnimalWelfare

Like Nada, we believe love means caring deeply about animal welfare at every stage of aquaculture.

It means showing up on farms, supporting farmers, strengthening systems, and working toward food systems that are both ethical and sustainable.

Love comes in many different forms.

And for Nada, our Aquaculture Specialist and Training Coordinator, that includes her love for fish as sentient beings - a driving force behind her work at Ethical Seafood Research.

Vote for Ethical Seafood Research in #ProjectForAwesome2026! 🐟

If you believe that animal welfare, farmer wellbeing and environmental sustainability should go hand-in-hand, you can vote for Ethical Seafood Research before voting closes on the 18th of February.

🔗 buff.ly/tNQsChD

Thanks to Africa Network for Animal Welfare, AU-IBAR and @unep.org, and to collaborators FAI, AQUAVET EGYPT, Kafrelsheikh University, KMFRI and @royalholloway.bsky.social and all farmers involved.

#AquaticAnimalWelfare #AfricanAquaculture #OneWelfare #SustainableFarming

Across contexts, building farmer confidence and capability, rather than imposing rigid standards, has proven essential for sustained change.

📄 Read the write-up of this talk on page 36 of the report:

The discussion also underscored the importance of behaviour-based indicators, flexible welfare thresholds grounded in local conditions and delivery models that work in practice, such as partnering with government extension officers in Kenya.

In Egypt, thousands of assessments across hundreds of farms demonstrated that consistent monitoring, combined with training and water-testing tools, leads to meaningful improvements in feeding and water management.

This includes collaboration with FAI on the Tilapia Welfare App, which supports farmers to assess indicators like health, behaviour and nutrition to receive practical, context-appropriate recommendations.

Wasseem highlighted ESR's work in Egypt and Kenya, where applied research, training and farmer-led interventions are driving measurable improvements.

With tilapia as Africa’s dominant farmed fish species, the opportunity to embed good welfare practices early is both timely and strategic.

Aquatic animals remain largely absent from mainstream welfare debates, despite direct links to farmer livelihoods, food security, consumer health and ecosystem sustainability.

In "Innovating for impact: New frontiers in advancing farmed fish welfare in Africa", Wasseem Emam shared lessons from ESR's ongoing work to integrate animal welfare considerations into the exponential growth of African aquaculture.

At the 9th annual African Animal Welfare Conference held in Cameroon in July 2025, hosted by Africa Network for Animal Welfare, AU IBAR & the @unep.org, ESR contributed to conversations on how aquatic animal welfare and environmental stewardship support a more sustainable and resilient future. 🌍🐟

The conference report is out!

Read the report here: https://seantience.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Sentience-in-aquatic-animals.pdf

#AquaticAnimalSentience #FishWelfare #AnimalWelfareScience #AquaculturePolicy #EthicalSeafood

We are grateful to Seantience, Animal Ethics and the broader scientific community for advancing this important work.

Let’s continue to build understanding, translate evidence into policy, support industry and improve outcomes for all aquatic animals. 🐟📊🌊

At Ethical Seafood Research, we ground our advocacy in robust scientific evidence. Reports like this reinforce why welfare protections for fish and other aquatic animals must be central to policy conversations and industry best practice.