Global shrimp aquaculture produces over 5 million tonnes annually, yet shrimp slaughter practices — including live boiling — raise serious welfare concerns given growing evidence of crustacean sentience.
The precautionary approach to crustacean sentience increasingly suggests that slaughtering shrimp by live boiling — while they are fully conscious — represents a significant welfare risk at enormous scale. Rapid chilling or electrical stunning before processing represents a more precautionary approach. The scale of global shrimp consumption means even small probability of suffering per animal multiplies to massive total harm.