Channel catfish is the most farmed fish in the United States. Welfare considerations including crowding, disease and slaughter methods are receiving increasing attention.
Channel catfish welfare is under-scrutinised relative to their production scale. As bottom-dwelling, tactile fish they have behavioural needs that high-density pond systems poorly address. Disease-driven mortality from ESC and other pathogens represents both a welfare and economic problem that better biosecurity and vaccination would address. Stunning at slaughter using electroimmobilisation has questionable efficacy — catfish show recovery of electrical activity more rapidly than some other species. The development of validated humane slaughter standards for catfish, and welfare research addressing their specific needs as a species, are priorities for improving outcomes for the billions of individuals produced annually.