Pre-slaughter stunning is one of the most impactful welfare interventions in the poultry industry. Understanding the available methods and their effectiveness is essential for improving welfare at the moment of death.
The moment of slaughter is the ultimate welfare event for farm animals, and improving the humaneness of poultry stunning has direct welfare impact at enormous scale. Traditional live-shackling and water bath systems require conscious birds to be hung upside down by their legs — a stressful and potentially painful process — before receiving electrical stunning that may be inadequate for full insensibility. Controlled atmosphere systems allow birds to lose consciousness in their transport crates, eliminating shackling stress entirely. The transition from conventional to controlled atmosphere killing represents one of the most significant near-term improvements available to the poultry industry. Consumer pressure, retailer requirements, and regulatory standards are the primary drivers of this transition.