The science of farm animal welfare continues to advance, with several priority research areas that would dramatically improve our ability to assess and improve conditions for billions of animals.
Welfare research priorities reflect both the knowledge gaps that limit our ability to improve animal welfare and the strategic opportunities where research investment would have the highest practical impact. Fish pain assessment is a clear research priority because welfare decisions about billions of fish in aquaculture and wild-capture fisheries currently must be made under greater uncertainty than for terrestrial species with validated assessment tools. Positive welfare indicators for aquaculture would transform certification from purely deficit-based to flourishing-based assessment. Invertebrate welfare science matters at the largest scale: if insects are sentient, their welfare is relevant to more individuals than any other animal category. These are not purely academic questions — they directly determine what welfare improvements are necessary, possible, and urgent.