The slaughter of over one billion broiler chickens annually in the UK involves welfare risks at multiple points including transport, stunning, and killing.
The welfare of chickens at slaughter involves multiple potential failure points: live shackling causes pain and stress; inverted hanging inverts a physiological position; electrical stunning in water baths may not contact all birds; and any bird that regains consciousness before the neck cut suffers acutely. Better alternatives including controlled atmosphere stunning with inert gas mixtures and on-farm killing systems exist and achieve significantly better welfare outcomes. Consumer and retailer demand for higher slaughter welfare is increasingly driving change.