Chris Packham ‘might stop’ over horror footage of injured salmon

Chris Packham has sensationally threatened to quit as President of the RSPCA in an animal welfare row – after salmon were filmed swimming around without tails and with chunks missing from their bodies.

Stomach-churning footage – filmed covertly at a farm run by a major seafood company supplying UK supermarkets – shows animals with bare bones and pink flesh exposed. Others have lumps missing from around their heads and necks.

Mr Packham, presenter of the BBC’s much-loved Springwatch programme, described the video as ‘abhorrent’ and said it was evidence of ‘appalling levels of cruelty’ at Scotland’s fish-farms.

Earlier this year the farm where the footage was shot was certified by RSPCA Assured – a not-for-profit body, affiliated to the RSPCA, which aims to reassure consumers that animal welfare standards have been met.

But in light of the new video footage, Mr Packham has condemned the RSPCA Assured scheme – and signalled that unless changes are made in the way welfare is enforced, he might quit as RSPCA President.

Mr Packham, 63, who took over the RSPCA role last year, said: ‘Imagine we were looking at pictures of sheep or cows grazing in a field with these horrific wounds or huge lumps missing from their bodies. 

There would be a national outcry. But because they’re fish, it’s as if that somehow makes it all right. Well it isn’t all right. It’s abhorrent.

‘What’s worse is that RSPCA Assured have justified what we see in this footage and given the farm a clean bill of health. 

Well, I’m the President of the RSPCA and I can’t tell you that it’s acceptable. I can’t justify it. It absolutely horrific.

‘I’m asking the RSPCA to shut down and review the RSPCA Assured scheme. 

It’s clearly not implementing a standard of welfare which is acceptable in the UK in the 21st century. Just look at the fish in this footage – they’re swimming around with massive chunks out of them.’

He said he was using his role as RSPCA President to try and make changes – but would consider standing down unless things improved.

He said: ‘I’m working with the RSPCA and I’m asking them to conduct these reviews and shut the scheme down. 

Whilst I’m still the President, I have access that allows me to do that.

‘Change is clearly needed. So at a certain point, if the methods that I’m using to effect that change are not working, then I obviously won’t bat on a losing wicket, I will have to do something else to try and drive that change.’

The gruesome footage of mutilated fish was filmed by Jamie Moyes, a former fish-farm worker turned anti salmon-farming activist, at the Soay fish farm in West Loch Tarbet in the Outer Hebrides on May 28th.

The farm is run by Mowi, which produces around a fifth of the world’s farmed salmon and sells to Tesco, Sainsburys and ASDA.

After approaching the fish farm on a dinghy, Mr Moyes used a camera attached to a 2.5m painter’s pole to shoot inside the floating fish-pen.

He said: ‘Fish swimming around with parts of their body missing doesn’t meet any type of welfare standards. It’s horrific to look at – and must be agonising for the fish themselves.

‘RSPCA Assured have endorsed this farm and given it their seal of approval. But the public are being mislead: these fish are suffering.’

The 43-year-old from Kishorn in the north-west Highlands is founder of a group called Abolish Salmon Farming.

He added: ‘Mowi is a giant business making huge profits. It’s the worst form of intensive farming.

‘I hope consumers see this and realise they no longer want to fund this form of cruelty.’

It is unclear if the damage seen in the footage was caused by seals attacking the fish through protective netting which is supposed to keep them safe – or some other cause such as sea lice infestation which can lead to infection, lesions and rotting flesh.

The RSPCA Assured scheme aims to ensure that salmon are protected from all forms of harm.

Its website states: ‘Amidst increasing evidence that fish are more intelligent than once thought, research continues to suggest they have the mental capacity to feel pain and suffer like any other animal. 

They, therefore, deserve to be looked after and shown the same respect and compassion as any other farmed animal.’

RSPCA Assured standards state ‘precautions must be taken to protect salmon from other animals that could cause them harm’ and ‘if the fish have been attacked, they must be checked for signs of any injury without delay from the time the attack became apparent.’

The standards also state ‘any fish with severe physical damage caused by sea lice grazing must be removed and dispatched humanely without delay.’

Having been passed the footage, RSPCA Assured continued to insist that the Soay fish farm met welfare standards.

A spokesperson said: ‘Following a visit by a highly trained animal welfare assessor, we can confirm that the farm was found to have all the correct procedures in place and were doing everything they could to prevent sea lice and seal attacks, including providing correct treatment for bacterial infection and having pro seal nets installed, which are specially designed to prevent seals biting through them.

‘Fish – whether farmed or wild – can suffer from sea lice and disease in the same way that domestic pets can suffer from parasites, such as mites and fleas, and need regular treatment. 

They can also fall victim to predation as part of the natural life cycle – particularly from seals as they are incredibly determined and very intelligent animals.

‘We will continue to work with the farm to help mitigate any future challenges, but we are satisfied that they acted responsibly, in accordance with both legislation and the RSPCA welfare standards.’

Mowi, based in Norway, is the world’s largest supplier of farm-raised salmon, harvesting 475,000 tonnes in 2023, equivalent to a global market share of approximately 20%.

The firm, which runs dozens of fish farms in Scotland, supplies salmon to British supermarkets. Tesco & Sainsburys both stock 230g packs of “Mowi Superior Salmon Fillets” and 100g packs of “Mowi Superior Smoked Salmon”.

ASDA also stocks Mowi Bistro Scottish Salmon Fillets with Lemon & Herb Butter, Mowi Bistro Scottish Salmon Pastries and Mowi Ready-to-Eat BBQ Slow Roasted Scottish Salmon Fillets

A spokesperson for Mowi said: ‘As farmers, our priority is animal welfare and we employ all resources to achieve this which includes veterinary oversight, daily checks, highest standard of husbandry and care along with underwater video to monitor the stock, and intervention if needed.

‘The fish population under our care at Soay is in great condition and we are obviously concerned that around half a dozen of the fish show signs of predator damage. 

We take action as soon as possible to remove individual fish doing poorly and humanely euthanise.’

Yesterday RSPCA Assured insisted that its scheme helped improve welfare standards.

A spokesperson said: ‘The RSPCA is proud to have Chris Packham, a passionate campaigner for animals, as their president and, while there isn’t always agreement on everything, we all share his desire to create a better world for all animals.

‘There is currently no specific legal protection for salmon, so without the RSPCA welfare standards, millions of fish would live worse lives. 

RSPCA Assured labelled salmon comes from farms that are inspected to over 700 standards aimed at improving their welfare. ‘

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I love life and I love animals, but this is completely unacceptable. It’s absolutely horrific, writes Chris Packham, President of the RSPCA and presenter of BBC’s Springwatch

By Chris Packham, President of the RSPCA and presenter of TV’s Springwatch. 

Imagine we were looking at pictures of sheep or cows grazing in a field with these horrific wounds or huge lumps missing from their bodies.

There would be a national outcry. It would quite rightly be front page news.

But because they’re fish, it’s as if that somehow makes it all right. Well it isn’t all right. It’s abhorrent.

Fish are a higher vertebrate: they learn, they feel pain, they go through their life cycle, they show attachment to other fish. It’s unacceptable to try and make excuses for these farmed fish to suffer this amount of pain and mistreatment.

It can’t be a case of ‘out of sight, out of mind’. If I had my way, I’d shut that fish farm down tomorrow, it’s that simple.

What’s worse is that RSPCA Assured have justified what we see in this footage and given the farm a clean bill of health.

Well, I’m the President of the RSPCA and I can’t tell you that it’s acceptable. I can’t justify it. It absolutely horrific.

I love life. I love animals. My whole life has been devoted to trying to protect them, to improving their environments and their habitats, to ensuring the the highest standards of animal welfare. It’s why I get up every day.

And it’s why I’m asking the RSPCA to shut down and review the RSPCA Assured scheme. It’s clearly not implementing a standard of welfare which is acceptable in the UK in the 21st century. 

How could anyone make the case that standards are being met? Just look at the fish in this footage – they’re swimming around with massive chunks out of them.

RSPCA Assured have suggested these wounds could be the result of seal attacks – which, so they say, are difficult to prevent because seals are determined and intelligent. Well so are serial killers. 

But no-one would accept that serial killers should just be left to rampage round society killing people, as if was just a fact of life. It’s utterly untenable.

I understand that the RSPCA wants to work with the industry, so they can influence from the inside. It gives them access and the ability to monitor fish farms. 

Their argument is that working with the industry allows them to maintain standards that otherwise wouldn’t be there: if no-one was policing it at all, then the salmon industry could do whatever it liked and there would be no-one holding companies to account in any way, shape, or form. 

But when we look at footage like this, we have to ask ourselves – is it working? Are the standards high enough? Is the policing done regularly enough? Are the punishments in place enough to improve this industry?

The RSPCA does an enormous amount of good work, undeniably, for companion animals, for pet rescue, prosecuting people for cruelty. 

It’s not that the RSPCA is bad – it’s just that the RSPCA Assured scheme is not working. 

I’m asking the RSPCA to shut down the RSPCA Assured scheme, conduct a thorough review and see if it can actually be improved to achieve what it needs to achieve.

Because at the moment we are seeing appalling levels of cruelty. From my perspective, it doesn’t matter whether it’s pigs, poultry or fish, they’re all equally important.

At the moment I’m working with the RSPCA and I’m asking them to conduct these reviews and shut these schemes down. 

Whilst I’m still the President, I have access that allows me to do that. 

It’s a bit like the argument the RSPCA puts forward for working with the salmon farming industry: I have dialogue with them; I’m trying to influence change from the inside.

And at this point in time, I’m doing everything I can to exert pressure… But there is a fragility there, a process of on-going review.

Change is clearly needed. So at a certain point, if the methods that I’m using to effect that change are not working, then I obviously won’t bat on a losing wicket, I will have to do something else to try and drive that change .

Meanwhile there’s a growing global movement of people opposed to salmon farming for ecological and environmental reasons. 

But from a welfare point of view, if fish farms can’t produce salmon in a way that doesn’t compromise their welfare – then it shouldn’t be happening.