The pre-slaughter phase of salmon farming involves significant welfare challenges during crowding, pump transfer and the period before effective stunning.
Pre-slaughter welfare in salmon farming is one of the most welfare-intensive phases of production due to the combination of crowding stress, physical handling, pump trauma and the variable quality of stunning before killing. The scale — billions of salmon slaughtered annually — means improvements to pre-slaughter welfare would affect an enormous number of animals. Investment in improved crowding protocols, gentler transfer systems and reliable stunning represents a high-impact welfare intervention.