Global Investigation Exposes Hidden Costs of Fishmeal and Aquaculture Feed
An extensive four-year investigation by Washington, DC-based news organization The Outlaw Ocean Project has documented the wide-ranging social and environmental impacts of reporting across the global fishmeal and fish oil industry. The reporting maps more than 1,400 fishmeal factories across 64 countries, revealing that the production of feed for farmed seafood is linked to ocean over-exploitation, local food insecurity, civil unrest, labor abuses, and forced labor in regions such as Russia, China, and West Africa. While the aquaculture industry has grown into a multi-billion-dollar sector providing affordable protein, critics and investigators warn that its heavy reliance on wild-caught fish feed carries severe hidden externalities.
Key points
- The Outlaw Ocean Project investigated more than 1,400 fishmeal factories across 64 countries over four years.
- The investigation documented overfishing, pollution, labor abuses, and forced labor tied to fishmeal production for aquaculture feed.
- South Africa exported $85-million worth of fishmeal in 2025, primarily to fish farms in Denmark, Spain, Greece, China, and Germany.
- At least nine lawsuits alleging false advertising have been filed against six seafood companies in US jurisdictions since 2020 over sustainability claims.
What Happened
A multi-year investigation by The Outlaw Ocean Project mapped roughly the entire global fishmeal industry, examining more than 1,400 processing plants and assessing over 2,400 ships operating across at least 30 countries. The reporting highlights how wild-caught fish are caught, cooked, and pulverized into fishmeal and fish oil to feed farmed seafood such as salmon, shrimp, and trout.
According to the investigation, less than 30% of the assessed fleet had publicly available location data, and under 25% featured a unique vessel identification number. Scientific studies cited in the report classified at least half of the species landed by these vessels as overexploited or worse.
Context
Aquaculture represents a $313-billion industry and accounts for more than half of the seafood consumed globally. Proponents argue that fish farming is an efficient animal protein system that provides affordable year-round nutrition and emits fewer greenhouse gases per pound than beef or pork for certain species.
However, critics and researchers emphasize that two-thirds of global aquaculture relies on species fed fishmeal and fish oil. In South Africa, officials like former fisheries minister Willie Aucamp have defended local processing investments as a commitment to sustainable resource utilization targeting healthier pelagic stocks like herring. Conversely, conservationists point out that harvesting these fish depletes crucial food sources for endangered species such as the African penguin.
What's Next
The investigation highlights growing legal and financial risks for the seafood industry, noting that at least nine lawsuits alleging false advertising have been brought against six US seafood companies since 2020 over disputed sustainability claims. Experts suggest that as more nations introduce stricter import controls on seafood tied to illegal or unsustainable practices, investors will increasingly face material risks, forcing companies to reform their supply chains.
Why it matters
Understanding the provenance of aquaculture feed reveals a stark disconnect between the marketing of sustainable seafood in wealthy markets and the severe ecological degradation, labor exploitation, and food insecurity suffered by producing communities in developing nations.
