Insect farming is growing rapidly as a sustainable protein source. The welfare of farmed insects raises profound questions that science is only beginning to address.
Insect welfare represents perhaps the most significant uncertainty in animal ethics. If insects are sentient — capable of subjective suffering — then insect farming at projected scales would represent suffering at a magnitude that dwarfs all other animal agriculture combined. Current evidence suggests insects have nociception — the ability to detect and respond to damaging stimuli — but whether they have the subjective experience of pain remains scientifically contested. The precautionary principle suggests that farming conditions for insects should be optimized regardless, and that research into insect sentience should be prioritized. The welfare cost of optimizing insect farming is low; the potential welfare benefit if insects are sentient is enormous.