There's this idea knocking around that seafood, including molluscs like clams, mussels, oysters, and scallops, but not fish, is vegan. That, if you are vegan and you don't eat animals, it's ok to eat these things. The argument is based on sentience, if an animal is sentient then it is not vegan to eat it, wear it, etc. But, if an animal isn't sentient then its just like a plant, right?
What is Sentience?
Sentience is "the capacity to have feelings, such as feelings of pain, pleasure, hunger, thirst, warmth, joy, comfort and excitement. It is not simply the capacity to feel pain, but feelings of pain, distress or harm". According to the London School of Economics and Political Science, it's more than just, does that hurt, it includes, I don't like that, I want it to stop. The school conducted a review of over 300 studies to assess the sentience of creatures classified as seafood, including squid, octopuses, and crabs. The criteria used to determine sentience consisted of eight points:
Possession of nociceptors
Possession of integrative brain regions
Connections between nociceptors and integrative brain regions
Responses affected by potential local anaesthetics or analgesics
Motivational trade-offs showing a balancing of threat against the opportunity for reward
Flexible self-protective behaviours in response to injury and threat
Associative learning that goes beyond habituation and sensitization
Behaviour that demonstrates the animal's recognition of and response to local anaesthetics or analgesics when injured.
Ultimately, this came down to whether animals were aware of pain when it was applied, if they tried to escape or alleviate pain, if they would use something like a painkiller if given the option, and if they pursued activities that brought them pleasure. The review concluded that the animals on their list were indeed sentient. When it comes to creatures like mussels, the argument becomes more complex. They cannot be tested in the same way as crayfish, but this does not mean they are not sentient. Mussels have been shown to exhibit avoidance behaviours when subjected to unpleasant stimuli, such as closing their shells when placed in water that is too hot, too cold, or too salty. A study on the responses of freshwater pearl mussels to different forms of danger even revealed that lone mussels were more cautious than those in a group. They felt more safe when they weren't alone.
Does This Make Seafood Non-Vegan? The principle of veganism isn't solely about abstaining from eating meat or consuming dairy; it's fundamentally about avoiding animal exploitation. When you consume octopus, crayfish, mussels, or crabs, you are exploiting these animals because, for you to eat them, they must die, and they did not choose to die. This choice is made because you enjoy the taste of their bodies. Is this vegan? No. Is it exploitation? Yes.
The term "vegan" encompasses a broader lifestyle choice that seeks to minimize the use of animals for food, clothing, entertainment, and other purposes. In this broader context, consuming seafood or any animal product is considered non-vegan because it involves the exploitation and harm of animals. Seafood production typically entails practices that result in harm and suffering to aquatic animals, whether through overfishing, bycatch, pollution, or farming methods that may be detrimental to the animals or their environment. Therefore, even if someone argued that they consumed seafood in a way that minimized harm or exploitation, it would still be inconsistent with the core principles of veganism. This is because the act of consuming seafood inherently involves the use of animals, which contradicts vegan values. The ethical and environmental concerns associated with seafood production make it incompatible with the overarching goal of veganism, which is to reduce harm to animals and minimize one's contribution to animal exploitation.
Sources
The London School of Economics and Political Science