Why Newsom signed a bill banning octopus farming in California – NBC Los Angeles

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a bill Monday banning the breeding of octopuses and the sale of farmed octopuses.

According to AB 3162, also known as the “California Oppose Cruelty to Octopuses (OCTO) Act,” authored by Rep. Steve Bennett, whose 38th District includes Oxnard, Ventura and the Channel Islands, anyone is prohibited from engaging in human aquaculture certain octopuses to participate in consumption.

The new law also prohibits business owners or operators from knowingly selling octopuses that come from octopus farms.

While octopus may not be part of the average Californian's diet, proponents of AB 3162 argue that as the popularity of seafood for human consumption has exploded over the past 50 years, there is also growing interest in developing octopus aquaculture.

The new law banning octopus farming was initially proposed for two reasons: cruelty to octopuses, which are known to have high levels of cognitive ability, and environmental concerns.

“Octopuses are among the most intelligent and complex creatures on Earth. Breeding them is not only inhumane, but also poses significant risks to the environment,” Rep. Laura Friedman, who sponsored the bill, told an animal rights group. “Instead of resorting to unproven 'breeding methods' to breed and slaughter octopuses, we should protect our marine ecosystem so that marine species can better recover.”

There is no known large-scale octopus farming and harvesting in California, but the bill would take a proactive step to promote animal welfare and allow California to become the second state in the U.S. to ban octopus aquaculture, advocates said.

Octopus farming also has environmental consequences, the bill's author said, as aquaculture facilities risk nitrogen and phosphorus runoff, which could lead to pollution and potential algae blooms that could be devastating to California's marine ecosystems.

The new law still allows octopuses to be harvested with a permit in state waters as long as the daily limit does not exceed 35 octopuses.

Although there were no opponents of the bill, several environmental groups supported the bill.

The law comes into force on January 1, 2025.