PETITION TARGETS: Mexican Lawmakers
On Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula, the only octopus farm in the Western Hemisphere is reportedly a place of immense suffering — where more than half of the animals die before they are ever sold, and roughly a third of those deaths result from cannibalism, a sign of deeply unnatural living conditions for these typically solitary animals.
Beyond the suffering inflicted on these intelligent, sensitive invertebrates, industrial octopus farming raises serious environmental and public health concerns. These operations rely on large quantities of wild-caught fish for feed — further straining ocean ecosystems — while also posing risks of antimicrobial resistance and parasites.
In response to these concerns, Mexico has introduced legislation that would ban cephalopod farming across the nation — becoming the second Latin American country to take this step after Chile’s proposal last year and joining a growing number of U.S. states pursuing similar bans.
Octopuses are remarkable creatures capable of problem-solving, tool use, and escaping enclosures, and they deserve far better than being raised in crowded tanks and slaughtered for human consumption.
Sign our petition urging legislators in Mexico to support this bill and protect these amazing animals from senseless suffering and death on industrial farms.
