The rapid growth of insect farming as a sustainable protein source raises important welfare questions given emerging evidence for insect sentience and the scale of production involved.
Insect farming is expanding rapidly as a sustainable protein source with lower environmental impacts than conventional livestock, but the welfare of farmed insects is poorly understood and largely unregulated. Scientific evidence for insect sentience is genuinely uncertain, but uncertainty is not grounds for dismissing welfare concern, particularly given the scale of numbers involved. Some evidence suggests insects can experience nociception and may avoid noxious stimuli, which warrants precautionary welfare consideration. Key potential welfare concerns in insect farming include extreme stocking densities, rapid temperature changes during processing, and killing methods that may cause suffering. Developing welfare standards for insect farming as it scales is an important proactive step.