PETA want Aberaeron to change Mackerel Fiesta to cabbage

Animal campaigners have called for Aberaeron to abandon its famous annual Mackerel Fiesta and replace the star of the show with cabbage.

The annual Aberaeron Mackerel Fiesta is a traditional late-summer community event hosted by the Aberaeron Yacht Club where the super-sized papier-mâché effigy of a mackerel is carried through town and burned in a light-hearted funeral procession to mark the end of the fishing season.

The event, which has been running since 2006, has now caught the attention of campaigners from the People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), who have suggested the town abandons using a mackerel and instead parades a papier-mâché cabbage, even producing a mock-up of what the new-look festival could look like.

PETA said that Aberaeron should ‘swap fish-focused festivities for an animal-friendly celebration of Welsh produce with the Aberaeron Cabbage Fiesta.’

In a letter to Aberaeron Yacht Club, PETA said: “Fish suffer immensely when they’re pierced by hooks through their delicate faces and often experience what experts call “the bends on steroids” when hauled from the depths.

“We know that fish feel pain, stress and fear.

“They’re also curious and intelligent animals who enjoy social bonds, find comfort in the touch of others, and even make art for love.

“Like all animals, fish value their lives and deserve respect and freedom.

“Celebrating life-giving plant produce rather than fish slaughter would be more in line with the compassion and warmth Wales is known for.”

PETA Vice President of Vegan Projects Dawn Carr said: “Fish aren’t swimming vegetables – they’re thinking, feeling individuals who experience pain and fear just as we do.

“By celebrating Welsh-grown produce instead of hauling sensitive animals from the sea, Aberaeron could create a fiesta that’s kinder, greener, and rooted in a more compassionate future.”