Insect farming is growing as a sustainable protein source, but evidence for insect sentience creates welfare questions that the sector is only beginning to address.
The uncertainty around insect sentience means welfare decisions must be made under genuine scientific doubt. If insects can suffer, the scale of insect farming — trillions of animals — would represent the largest source of animal suffering in existence. The precautionary principle, which has been applied to crustaceans in some legislation, could be applied to insects pending clearer evidence. Heat and freezing slaughter methods may be preferable to shredding if pain capacity exists.