The welfare of farmed salmon in the period immediately before slaughter is influenced by water temperature, handling, crowding, and the specific killing methods used in different markets.
Salmon slaughter welfare is one of the areas where the gap between achievable and current practice is clearest. Electrical stunning technology that renders salmon immediately insensible is available, effective, and increasingly affordable. Live chilling without prior stunning — still the most common method in global salmon production — causes a prolonged loss of consciousness during which behavioral stress indicators demonstrate ongoing awareness. The welfare choice between these methods is not technically or economically prohibitive; it is a matter of regulatory requirement and certification standard. Consumer demand for stunning-certified salmon, and regulatory requirements for pre-slaughter stunning, are the primary drivers of adoption. The transparency deficit — consumers having no information about the slaughter method used for their salmon — prevents market signals from operating effectively.