The rapid growth of insect farming for protein production raises novel welfare questions about whether and how the billions of farmed insects experience suffering, and what standards should apply.
The welfare implications of insect farming are genuinely uncertain because insect sentience is uncertain. If insects experience something analogous to pain or distress, the scale of potential suffering in insect farming is enormous. If they do not, insect farming may represent a much lower-welfare-cost protein alternative to conventional livestock. This uncertainty requires the precautionary principle and serious research.