Welfare during the pre-slaughter period for farmed Atlantic salmon, covering crowding, transport, and stunning.
Salmon pre-slaughter welfare is one of the most welfare-critical periods in the production cycle. The crowding, pump transfer, and dewatering sequence that delivers fish to slaughter involves multiple acute welfare harms including hypoxia, physical injury from crowding, and extreme stress from air exposure. Effective electrical stunning immediately before slaughter provides humane unconsciousness if applied correctly and at adequate voltage. The welfare difference between best and worst pre-slaughter practice is enormous — from rapid, effective stunning to prolonged consciousness during slaughter after air exposure stress.