'Perplexing at best, punitive at worst': Cooke says Washington State decision will force it to kill over 330,000 juvenile steelhead salmon

Cooke Aquaculture said Tuesday it will now have to kill 332,000 juvenile steelhead it planned to stock at its Rich Passage and Hope Island farms in Washington state after the Washington State Department of Natural Resources (DNR) on Monday announced it will not renew licenses for the company's remaining steelhead farms, ending the Canadian seafood giant's netpen farming operations in the state.

"From an animal welfare perspective, with this decision Commissioner of Public Lands Hilary Franz is forcing Cooke Aquaculture Pacific to kill 332,000 juvenile steelhead," said Cooke Spokesperson Joel Richardson.