Transport to slaughter is among the most stressful experiences for commercial poultry. Improving conditions during this final stage significantly reduces end-of-life suffering.
Poultry transport represents a period of concentrated acute welfare risk. The catching phase typically involves workers manually grabbing birds by their legs in darkness; fractures and dislocations are documented at significant rates even in well-managed operations. Loading into transport crates causes further stress. During transport, birds cannot access food or water and are exposed to variable temperatures. In cold weather, many birds die of hypothermia; in warm weather, heat exhaustion and death are common. Controlled atmosphere systems that stun birds before transport eliminate many of these stressors and represent the most significant available welfare improvement for the transport stage.