Transport to slaughter is one of the highest-risk welfare periods for poultry. Millions of birds die or are injured each year due to inadequate transport conditions and journey management.
Transport represents an acute welfare crisis compressed into a short period. Catching, crating, loading, the journey itself, and lairage all impose stress in sequence. Birds that arrive at slaughter already severely compromised die in distress or are killed in poor condition. The inability to eat, drink, or move during transport causes dehydration and fatigue. Extreme temperatures — both heat in summer and cold in inadequately ventilated vehicles — cause rapid deterioration. Many of these deaths and injuries are preventable through better catching systems, vehicle design, loading density standards, and journey duration limits. The economic pressure to fill vehicles to capacity works directly against welfare improvement without regulatory or market incentives to change.