The period spent in lairage after transport and before slaughter is a significant welfare challenge for poultry, with heat, social stress, and deprivation all affecting birds.
Lairage is a welfare-critical transition point that occurs after the stress of transport and before slaughter, representing a period where accumulated welfare deficits can be prolonged or partially mitigated. Birds arrive at slaughter facilities already stressed from catching, crating, and transport, and the quality of lairage management determines whether this stress is exacerbated or managed. The fundamental challenges are thermal: poultry in densely packed crates in warm conditions overheat rapidly. Water deprivation during extended lairage periods causes measurable dehydration. The economic pressure to move birds through slaughter lines quickly creates incentives that work against welfare-focused lairage management. Welfare improvement in lairage requires regulatory standards with meaningful enforcement, combined with economic arguments that show welfare improvements also protect meat quality.