Whales play a crucial role in ocean ecosystems by fertilizing phytoplankton, which produce up to 85% of the world's oxygen. These marine giants stimulate the growth of these microscopic plants through their fecal matter, which are rich in iron and nitrogen. This process enhances phytoplankton productivity, contributing significantly to the oxygen we breathe. Protecting whales is essential for maintaining this oxygen supply and overall planetary health.

Every year, 2.7 trillion fish are caught globally, which translates to a staggering 5 million fish per minute. This massive scale of fishing not only depletes fish populations but also results in significant bycatch, where non-target species such as whales, dolphins, seals, and sea turtles are unintentionally caught and killed. Approximately 40% of all fish caught are discarded, leading to the death of these animals. Moreover, fishing vessels kill around 650,000 marine mammals annually due to entanglement and bycatch.

Sharks, which are vital for maintaining the balance of marine ecosystems, and have been around far longer than us human-beings, are being decimated at alarming rates. Humans kill between 11,000 and 30,000 sharks per hour, leading to population declines of up to 99% in species such as thresher, bull, and hammerhead sharks over the last two decades. This drastic reduction severely threatens the stability of marine ecosystems.

Seabird populations have seen a dramatic decline of 70% since the 1950s. Overfishing has disrupted the food chain, reducing the availability of fish for these birds.

The Pacific bluefin tuna has been fished to the brink of extinction, with only 3% of its population remaining. This species is now classified as endangered.

Simply put: the fishing industry’s impact is devastating; it kills more animals in a single day than the Deepwater Horizon oil spill did over several months. Scientists predict that by 2048, our oceans will be practically devoid of fish, and therefore, devoid of other marine life, too.

By eliminating fish from our diet, we can help the oceans to recover and support the recovery of our marine ecosystem, and endangered species such as sharks, blue-fin tuna, and seabirds. Moreover, you can stop the killing of dolphins, whales, and seals, simply by opting to eat fish alternatives.

The Environment

The oceans are a major carbon sink, absorbing a staggering four times more CO2 than the Amazon rainforest, making them critical in mitigating climate change. Yet, current marine protection efforts are grossly inadequate. While researchers recommend protecting 30% of our oceans, only 5% are designated as marine protected areas (MPAs), and within these MPAs, 90% still permit fishing activities. This insufficient protection allows the continued decline of marine biodiversity. The fishing industry is having a catastrophic impact on our world.

Globally, there are 4.6 million commercial fishing vessels, laying enough longline fishing gear daily to encircle the planet 500 times. This intensive fishing effort devastates marine ecosystems. Scientists predict that 90% of the world’s coral reefs will die by 2050 due to climate change, pollution, and overfishing. Coral reefs rely on fish populations for nutrients provided through their excretions, but declining fish populations threaten the survival of these critical habitats.

Commercial fishing practices, particularly bottom trawling, are highly destructive. These trawlers drag nets the size of football fields across the ocean floor, obliterating everything in their path and causing irreversible damage to marine habitats. Farmed fish, which now make up 50% of the world’s seafood, suffer from various health issues, including anemia, lice infestations, infectious diseases, and heart disease. The environmental impact of fish farming is significant, with each salmon farm in Scotland producing waste equivalent to a town of 10,000 to 20,000 people annually. Additionally, up to 50% of farmed salmon die before reaching the plate, and their flesh is artificially colored to appeal to consumers.

Shrimp farming is responsible for 38% of global mangrove deforestation. Mangroves are critical for coastal protection and carbon storage, and their destruction further exacerbates climate change and habitat loss. Fish, which are often contaminated with heavy metals, mercury, plastic compounds, hexachlorobenzenes, and PCBs, pose health risks that often outweigh the benefits of their omega-3 fatty acids. It is also worth noting fish do not actually produce omega-3 fatty acids; algae do.

Fish carbon plays a role in climate stabilization by absorbing almost all of the earth’s excess heat. However, the continued depletion of fish populations and the resulting toxic, fishless oceans will render this function impossible. Runoff from animal agriculture contributes to oceanic dead zones—areas with low oxygen levels that cannot support marine life. The loss of just 1% of the ocean’s carbon stores is equivalent to the emissions from 97 million cars.

Up to 50% of ocean plastic pollution is attributed to discarded fishing nets. The fishing industry receives substantial financial support, with $35 billion in subsidies, promoting unsustainable practices.

The oceans, which are home to up to 80% of all life on Earth, are under severe threat. The combined impacts of overfishing, destructive fishing practices, pollution, climate change, and habitat destruction are driving marine species to extinction and degrading the health of marine ecosystems. Addressing these issues is critical for preserving marine biodiversity and maintaining the environmental services that oceans provide, such as oxygen production, carbon storage, and climate regulation.

Most people tend to think of fish as a healthy choice, one with significant nutritional benefits such as omega-3 fatty acids. However, what few seem to people know is that eating fish can actually have a long-lasting impact on your health:

1. Contamination with Heavy Metals and Toxins:

   • Mercury: Fish, especially large predatory species like tuna, swordfish, and sharks, can accumulate high levels of mercury. Mercury exposure can lead to serious health issues, including neurological and developmental problems, particularly in pregnant women and young children.

   • Plastic Compounds and PCBs: Fish can contain plastic compounds and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which are industrial chemicals linked to cancer and other serious health problems. These contaminants enter the food chain through pollution and can accumulate in fish tissues.

   • Hexachlorobenzenes (HCBs): HCBs are persistent organic pollutants found in fish that have been associated with liver disease, immune system dysfunction, and reproductive issues.

2. Farmed Fish Health Issues:

   • Disease and Parasites: As we’ve already stated, farmed fish are often prone to diseases such as anemia, lice infestations, infectious diseases, and even chlamydia. These conditions can spread to wild fish populations and pose a risk to human consumers.

   • Use of Antibiotics and Chemicals: To manage disease and parasites, farmed fish are frequently treated with antibiotics and other chemicals. Overuse of antibiotics can lead to antibiotic-resistant bacteria, posing a significant public health risk.

   • Artificial Coloring: Farmed salmon are fed synthetic astaxanthin to give their flesh the desired orange/pink color, which raises concerns about the additives and chemicals used in their feed.

3. Nutrient Imbalance:

   • Omega-3 vs. Contaminants: While fish are a source of omega-3 fatty acids, which are beneficial for heart health, the contaminants present in fish far outweigh these benefits. Algae, the primary producers of omega-3 fatty acids, can provide these nutrients without the associated risks of consuming fish.

4. Waste and Environmental Toxins:

   • Waste from Fish Farming: Fish farms produce significant amounts of organic waste, equivalent to that of large towns, contributing to water pollution and the spread of toxins in aquatic environments. This pollution can also affect the safety and quality of fish intended for human consumption.

Tuna

If you're a pescetarian, it's generally assumed that you still consume dairy and eggs, along with fish. However, if the ethical, environmental and health concerns associated with fish consumption have now led you to reconsider your dietary choices, it’s worth knowing that dairy and eggs also pose the very same issues, as we’ve highlighted below.

Dairy

Dairy products are produced primarily from cows milk. Of course, there is some demand for goats milk, too. Both of these animals have strong maternal instincts and carry their babies for may months - cows actually carry their calves for nine months, the same as us, and the milk that they produce, just like all mammals, is intended for their babies.

In the dairy industry, most cows are impregnated through artificial insemination - a highly distressing processes that involves farmers restraining the cows and inserting their whole arm into their rectum. Their calves are taken away shortly after birth, in order to maximize milk production. After being separated, both mother and calf experience tremendous grief and anxiety, with farmers freely admitting that they cry out for one another for days, if not weeks afterwards and that this in itself can increase lactation.

Female calves endure the same fate as their mothers, while male calves are typically killed just a couple of days after birth, often in a brutal, violent way, or they’re kept for several months before being slaughtered for veal. Both sexes are, however, denied the right to drink from their mother and placed onto a weak formula and kept in solitary confinement for prolonged periods of time.

For the mother cow, this cycle of impregnation and grief repeats until she is no longer capable of producing enough milk. When that happens, she is slaughtered for cheap meat, usually at around 4-5 years old, despite her natural lifespan being around 20-25 years.

Every year in the UK, over 150,000 pregnant dairy cows are sent to slaughter. Their foetuses, many nearing full-term, suffer a prolonged, painful demise in the womb as their mother bleeds to death after having her throat slit. Sometimes, during the slaughter process, the calves will be cut out from the mother during the removal of her internal organs and then tossed on the bloody kill floor, left to die.

Eggs

Before human intervention, in their natural environment, hens used to lay around 12 eggs per year, like many other wild birds.
However, the egg industry has now selectively bred hens to produce up to 350+ eggs per year. This intensive egg-laying cycle severely strains their small bodies, leading to numerous health issues such as osteoporosis and prolapses.

To maintain the population of productive hens, hatcheries incubate eggs to produce new chicks. Both male and female chicks hatch from these eggs, but the males, unable to lay eggs, are considered useless by the industry. Consequently, they are killed shortly after hatching, often by methods such as grinding them alive or suffocation. In some cases, they are discarded in garbage bins to die slowly.

Throughout their lives, most hens in the egg industry are confined to small, crowded cages where they never experience sunlight or fresh air. They are unable to perform natural behaviors like spreading their wings, perching, or foraging for food. This extreme confinement leads to significant behavioral issues, including aggression and frustration among the hens. To mitigate these issues, the industry often resorts to de-beaking, a process where over a quarter of a hen’s sensitive beak is cut off, all without the use of painkillers. This procedure causes long-term pain.

The use of the words “Free-range” and “organic” were created to make you, the consumer, feel better about your purchase. But, the sad reality is, whether factory farmed, free range, or organic, the egg industry still depletes hens of their calcium through the demand for their eggs, it still sees male chicks as waste products to be disposed of and, whilst cages cannot legally be used, in the eyes of the law, all free-range means is that they must have about an iPad’s worth of space, and they are invariably still confined to overcrowded sheds, with very little opportunity to ever see daylight.

When hens are no longer productive, they are sent to slaughter, after enduring a short life of suffering. Many hens die from the harsh conditions before they even reach the slaughterhouse, and many die on the slaughter trucks themselves, as they are crammed into tiny crates.

By choosing not to buy fish or other animal products you actively withdraw your support from these cruel industries. It's a powerful demonstration of your principles. And you might say, "What difference does it make if I stop them? I’m just one person, that won’t make a difference." This scepticism isn’t uncommon, but remember, social change is driven by individuals. And each time you choose a plant-based alternative over an animal product, you contribute to a growing force that pressures industries to move away from their reliance upon animal suffering. The prevalence of vegan options in supermarkets, fast food chains, cafés and restaurants is proof that this shift is happening. And, eventually, we will see a society where vegan foods are the norm, and animal products are few and far between. And you can play a very real part in making that happen even sooner.

Moreover - you’re not even missing out, because everything you enjoy eating can be made vegan. Yes, really. Everything, from tuna sandwiches, to fish and chips, to cheesy pasta bake and even omelettes - all can be made without animal products. You might be daunted at the thought of change, at first. It’s natural. We all are, and it can be hard to know where to start, and you might think you can’t to devote the time to it, but, the truth is, with so many resources and alternatives available now, transitioning to a vegan lifestyle has never been easier, or quicker.

Challenge 22 is just one of the many free, online challenges that will help you transition to a vegan lifestyle, but what’s special about them is there’ll be over a dozen vegan mentors available to help you at any given time and suggest recipes and alternatives, and there’s even a trained nutritionist on hand to give advice (not that nutrition is a concern, but sadly a lot of people think it is, due to all the misinformation out there about veganism) - it’s less than a month of your life, and completely FREE. So give it a go!

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