Advanced welfare science for farmed European and Japanese eels, addressing their complex biology, evidence of nociception, welfare challenges in intensive systems, and sustainability concerns.
Farmed eel welfare presents compounding problems — the industry relies on wild-caught juveniles of critically endangered species, holds them in intensive conditions that cause chronic stress and injury, and typically uses inhumane slaughter methods. Each of these issues represents a significant ethical concern in isolation; together, they make eel farming one of the most problematic sectors in aquaculture from both conservation and welfare perspectives. Scientific evidence increasingly supports eel capacity for pain, making the common practice of live processing without stunning deeply concerning from a welfare standpoint. Improved welfare standards for eels, combined with urgent wild stock protection, are needed to address the compounding harms of current industry practice.