Pig transport is a significant welfare event involving noise, motion, unfamiliar smells, and social disruption. Evidence-based standards for journey duration, stocking density, and vehicle conditions reduce pig suffering during transport.
Pig transport concentrates multiple welfare stressors into a brief period: removal from familiar social groups and environment, loading stress, motion, noise, unfamiliar smells, and potentially extreme temperatures all occur simultaneously. The cumulative effect is significant physiological and psychological stress that takes hours to days to fully resolve. Transport duration and conditions are regulated in most jurisdictions but enforcement is inconsistent and standards remain below what welfare science would recommend. The most welfare-significant transport issue globally is probably long-distance live export — pigs (and other livestock) transported thousands of kilometres by road and ship face welfare conditions that cannot be adequately controlled for journey durations of days to weeks. The most welfare-positive solution for slaughter transport is the shortest possible journey time, ideally with on-farm slaughter eliminating transport entirely where economically feasible.