Washington became the first U.S. state — and according to the group Compassion in World Farming, the first government anywhere — to ban octopus farming.

The legislation comes as scientists and animal advocates express outrage over a large seafood company in Spain that farm octopuses on an unprecedented scale to harvest them for seafood.

“Octopus farming hurts our environment and causes suffering for octopuses and it is well past time to prohibit this callous practice,” representative Strom Peterson who sponsored the bill said in a statement.

The US is also moving to pass a federal bill to ban commercial octopus farming as well as octopus imports. The move comes amid rising concerns over the environmental, ethical, and public health challenges associated with octopus farming.

Source: IFL Science

[https://www.iflscience.com/a-trail-blazing-ban-on-octopus-farming-becomes-law-in-washington-state-73423](https://www.iflscience.com/a-trail-blazing-ban-on-octopus-farming-becomes-law-in-washington-state-73423)