Aquatic Life Institute Announces 2026 Aquaculture Certification Schemes Benchmark, Reveals Progress for Welfare
The welfare-based analysis reviews 12 certification schemes and 2 international ratings agencies in its 5th edition
Aquatic Life Institute (ALI) has published the fifth edition of its Aquaculture Certification Schemes Benchmark report, which remains the world’s only evidence-based tool designed to evaluate how strongly aquatic animal welfare is embedded within aquaculture certification and rating frameworks.
Seafood certification schemes and ratings agencies act as de facto regulators in a largely unregulated global industry. Through transparent evaluation, constructive dialogue, and evidence-based recommendations, the Benchmark seeks to accelerate the integration of robust animal welfare standards across global aquaculture. Since the introduction of structured feedback cycles, several certification schemes have incorporated new welfare language directly aligned with Benchmark recommendations, particularly in areas where provisions were previously absent or insufficiently explicit.
The 2026 edition analyses current welfare requirements within the primary farming standards of 12 global seafood certification schemes and two international ratings agencies, representing the broadest scope of the Benchmark to date, expanding the geographic and regulatory diversity represented in the assessment. Updated methodology in the 2026 edition includes an expansion of the Transport Welfare Criterion to Transport & Handling, broadening the assessment to include routine handling practices. Further, the Benchmark now evaluates Antimicrobial Misuse as a Core Prohibition, recognizing the welfare implications associated with routine, prophylactic, or otherwise unjustified antimicrobial use.
The global seafood certification schemes and international ratings agencies reviewed in this year’s Benchmark influence the treatment of tens of billions of aquatic animals each year. Within the report, Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC), Certified Humane®, GLOBALG.A.P., Global Animal Partnership (GAP), Global Seafood Alliance’s Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP), Friend of the Sea, Naturland Organic, OceanWise Seafood, RSPCA, Label Rouge, Marine Eco Label, Acquacoltura Sostenibile, Soil Association Organic, and Monterey Bay Aquarium’s Seafood Watch are evaluated on water quality, stocking density and space requirements, environmental enrichment, feed composition, transport and handling, and stunning and slaughter. In addition, the schemes and agencies are evaluated for their inclusion of prohibitions on octopus/cephalopod farming, use of insects in aquafeed, certification of shrimp from eyestalk-ablated broodstock, use of Genetically Modified Organisms (GMOs) for faster growth, and antimicrobial misuse.
Based on assessment of the above criteria, Certified Humane retains the highest overall score for the second consecutive year, increasing its performance to 9.5 following the incorporation of animal welfare provisions into its standards through changes informed by ALI’s 2025 Benchmark. RSPCA received the second highest rating at 8.45, and ASC received the third highest rating at 7.95.
“We are honoured that Certified Humane has once again been recognised as the top-ranked scheme in the 2026 ALI’s Aquaculture Certification Schemes Benchmark. This recognition underscores the importance of robust animal welfare standards in promoting higher welfare for farmed Atlantic salmon and driving meaningful improvements across the aquaculture sector,” Rosangela Poletto, Certified Humane Scientific Committee Director.
Further, Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP) demonstrated one of the largest improvements in overall score and continues to show a strong commitment to strengthening its animal welfare standards through ongoing engagement and standard development.
“Animal Health and Welfare is a core pillar of Best Aquaculture Practices and we greatly appreciate ALI’s role in supporting the strength and integrity of our certification program. The annual Benchmark provides a valuable learning and collaboration opportunity for the Global Seafood Alliance and BAP standards. ALI’s commitment to learning the critical details of both our standards and our certification operations has led to a stronger collaboration and more impactful improvement to our animal welfare assurances,” said David Dietz, Director of Standards.
An additional highlight from the 2026 Benchmark comes from a total of six certification schemes including octopus/cephalopod farming prohibitions in their standards, reflecting the growing momentum against the practices: Certified Humane, RSPCA, Aquaculture Stewardship Council (ASC), Soil Association, Friend of the Sea, and Best Aquaculture Practices (BAP).
An overall assessment of all data collected showed that operational welfare is well established throughout the standards. Requirements relating to feed governance, water quality management, stocking density, transport and handling procedures, and humane stunning and slaughter are now incorporated by most certification schemes, providing an increasingly consistent baseline for animal welfare protection. However, behavioral welfare remains underdeveloped. Requirements promoting environmental complexity, behavioural stimulation, and opportunities for natural behaviour continue to be among the least frequently adopted provisions, indicating that positive welfare outcomes remain insufficiently addressed.
View the full assessment here.
“What makes the Benchmark meaningful is that it does not end with a score,” said Steffan Edward, Certification Lead at ALI. “Behind every standard we assess are decisions that can ultimately shape the daily lives of millions of aquatic animals. This year, we saw certification schemes engage with our findings, reconsider existing requirements, and, in some cases, make concrete changes or commitments in response. That is exactly what we hope this work can achieve. The Benchmark gives us a way to recognize progress while remaining clear about where important gaps still exist. By returning to this process every year, we can keep raising expectations alongside the science and, most importantly, help turn better welfare standards into better lives for animals.”
The Benchmark serves as a practical resource for certification schemes, seafood companies, policymakers, researchers, funders, and animal welfare organizations. The annual report and Seafood Certification Program are designed to embed animal welfare into supply chains and trade regulations, encouraging accountability and reshaping the seafood industry on a global scale. This report focuses exclusively on animal welfare, recognizing it as an increasingly important component of responsible aquaculture and a growing priority for producers, certification schemes, retailers, investors, and consumers. It does not assess environmental sustainability, food safety, social responsibility, governance performance, or the implementation of and compliance with the standards.
About Aquatic Life Institute
Aquatic Life Institute is an international non-profit organization that works on advancing aquatic animal welfare in both aquaculture and wild capture fisheries globally. The organization works with certifiers, nonprofits, academic institutions, industry stakeholders, governments, and the public to improve welfare of aquatic animals.
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