Slaughter line speed determines how much time workers have per animal, with excessive speeds linked to higher rates of failed stunning, improper handling, and welfare violations at the most critical point in an animal's life.
Line speed at slaughter is a structural determinant of welfare outcomes that receives insufficient regulatory attention. The pressure to maintain processing speed creates systemic conditions where individual animals can be processed improperly without adequate opportunity for correction. Failed stunning means animals may regain consciousness during bleeding — a catastrophic welfare failure that is entirely preventable. Regulatory line speed limits based on demonstrated capacity to stun and kill humanely, combined with independent welfare monitoring, represent achievable systemic improvements that would prevent significant suffering at the end of farmed animals' lives.