Shrimp are farmed in enormous numbers globally and may have greater capacity for suffering than traditionally assumed, making welfare standards urgently needed.
The welfare status of shrimp is scientifically uncertain but increasingly taken seriously. They possess nociceptors, respond to injury with protective behaviors, and show changes in behavior after painful stimuli. The scale of shrimp farming means that even small probabilities of suffering are morally significant. Current slaughter methods are largely developed for speed and practicality rather than welfare. The Shrimp Welfare Project is working to develop evidence-based welfare interventions for farmed shrimp.