As evidence of crustacean nociception grows, the development and adoption of humane stunning methods for farmed prawns before slaughter is becoming a welfare priority for progressive aquaculture.
The development of humane stunning for farmed prawns is at an early but important stage. Unlike fish, for which electrical and percussive stunning methods are well established, crustacean stunning research is newer and the optimal parameters less defined. The challenge is applying welfare improvement at the industrial scale of prawn processing, where millions of animals are killed daily. Leading researchers and welfare organisations are working with aquaculture producers to evaluate promising methods and develop practical guidance. Regulatory frameworks in countries with crustacean welfare legislation are beginning to specify requirements, and voluntary adoption by progressive producers is creating commercial demonstration of feasibility. The welfare case for investing in this research and adoption is proportionate to the enormous scale of suffering at stake.