Transport is one of the most stressful events in a farmed pig's life. Understanding the welfare impacts of loading, transit, and unloading drives improvements that can reduce suffering for millions of animals.
Transport causes a cascade of welfare harms for pigs: fear and stress from loading, social disruption from mixing unfamiliar individuals, physical exhaustion and injury during transit, and temperature extremes. Pigs with porcine stress syndrome (a genetic predisposition more common in heavily muscled breeds) can die from transport stress. Welfare improvements include low-stress loading with good handling training for stockpeople, avoiding mixing of unfamiliar pigs, regulating journey times and vehicle conditions, and scheduling transport to avoid temperature extremes. Slaughter close to the farm of origin — reducing transport distances — is the most effective single welfare improvement.