Nueva Pescanova cancels world's first octopus farm in Canary Islands

Nueva Pescanova, the Spanish seafood giant, has withdrawn its application to build the world’s first commercial octopus farm in the Canary Islands. The project, which was to be located at the Port of Las Palmas, involved an estimated investment of approximately 65 million euros.

The ambitious plan aimed to produce between 500 and 3,000 tons of octopus annually by leveraging a patent from the Spanish Institute of Oceanography regarding octopus reproduction in captivity. However, the project faced significant opposition from scientists, conservationists, and animal welfare advocates who raised concerns regarding the intelligence and sentience of octopuses, as well as the ecological impact of farming carnivorous species.

In official communications, Nueva Pescanova attributed the decision to corporate and administrative reasons, specifically citing new regulatory requirements for environmental reviews that altered the project’s scope and timeline. The company stated that the withdrawal does not imply a lack of scientific viability for the project.