The practice of boiling lobsters alive is increasingly scrutinised as evidence accumulates that decapod crustaceans are capable of experiencing pain. Switzerland and the UK have already legislated changes based on this evidence.
Lobsters dropped into boiling water show vigorous attempts to escape, thrash and may take 2-3 minutes to die. Whether these responses involve subjective suffering remains a subject of scientific debate, but the precautionary principle applied to sentience suggests that humane killing should be adopted wherever feasible. Research by Elwood, Sherrat and others has demonstrated that lobsters modify their behaviour after aversive stimuli in ways consistent with pain learning rather than simple reflexive responses. The welfare improvement from stunning before killing is significant if lobsters are sentient, and negligible in terms of cost and effort if they are not.