A series of maritime disasters in the 1960s involving spontaneous combustion of fishmeal prompted the feed industry to adopt ethoxyquin, a chemical antioxidant, as a safety solution. The additive proved highly effective at preventing fires during transport and storage, with ship fire incidents declining from approximately 16 annually to about 5 by the 1970s. Regulatory bodies, including the U.S. Coast Guard in 1976 and the United Nations maritime authority in 1979, eventually mandated or recommended the chemical’s use in fishmeal shipments.
However, scientific research revealed significant health concerns about ethoxyquin. Studies dating back to 1969 identified toxic effects in laboratory animals, while later research documented potential carcinogenic properties and the presence of p-phenetidine, an impurity capable of causing genetic mutations. These findings prompted regulatory action in some regions, with the European Commission suspending authorization for ethoxyquin use in animal feed in 2017. The chemical is now banned in the United Kingdom and European Economic Area countries including Norway, Iceland, and Liechtenstein.
Despite these restrictions, ethoxyquin remains authorized in the United States, Australia, Japan, and South Korea. This geographic divide has created legal complications, with multiple class-action lawsuits filed in the U.S. against seafood companies for marketing products as sustainable while containing the additive. Several cases have been settled out of court, with plaintiffs citing the European ban and studies linking ethoxyquin to environmental and aquatic life impacts.
With farmed fish now representing more than half of global seafood consumption, questions about feed additives have gained prominence. Regulatory oversight varies internationally, with Canadian authorities requiring labeling but not conducting systematic testing for the chemical’s presence in finished seafood products. Industry responses have shifted toward alternatives, with major producers including Cargill phasing out ethoxyquin in certain markets, while Peruvian, British, and Norwegian fishmeal exporters have increasingly adopted ethoxyquin-free formulations, particularly for shipments to Europe, Canada, the U.S., and Australia.
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