Shrimp farming is one of the world's largest aquaculture industries, producing billions of animals annually. Evidence suggests shrimp may experience pain-like states, raising significant welfare questions.
Shrimp welfare is a rapidly growing area of concern within animal advocacy. Though the sentience of decapod crustaceans was long disputed, accumulating evidence of nociception and aversive learning has led the UK, for example, to include decapods under animal welfare legislation. Farmed shrimp face severe welfare challenges: extreme crowding, hypoxic conditions, ammonia toxicity, handling stress, and unstunned killing. Eyestalk ablation — practiced on broodstock females — is particularly concerning. As consumer and regulatory awareness grows, pressure to adopt welfare standards such as stunning prior to slaughter and elimination of ablation is increasing.