Progress! California State Senate Passes Bill to Ban Octopus Farming

In a positive step for octopuses, the California State Senate has just passed A.B. 3162, the Oppose Cruelty to Octopuses (OCTO) Act. This important bill will prohibit octopus farming on both land and water in California and will also ban the import of commercially farmed octopus into the state.

The bill, which initially passed the California State Assembly in the spring, passed the Senate with a vote of 36-0. This strong show of support reflects lawmakers commitment to preventing California from becoming the host of cruel and unethical octopus farms like the one planned by Nueva Pescanova in Spain.

The bill was presented to Governor Gavin Newsom on September 5th, and he now has 30 days to sign it into law. The OCTO Act, which was co-sponsored by the Animal Legal Defense Fund and Social Compassion in Legislation, is already being celebrated as a sure victory by animal activists across the state. Once the legislation becomes law, California will be the second state in the nation to preemptively prohibit octopus farming, following Washington State, which passed a similar ban in March.

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