Billions of insects are killed annually as crop pests through pesticide application and mechanical methods, raising questions about scale of invertebrate welfare harm.
The welfare implications of pest insect mortality are uncertain given ongoing debates about insect sentience, but the scale demands attention. Pesticide-killed insects may experience distress before death; sublethal exposure causes neurological impairment that may involve suffering. The numbers involved are so vast — potentially trillions annually — that even small probability of morally significant suffering aggregates to an enormous total. Integrated pest management and reduced pesticide use are welfare-positive regardless of the sentience debate.