European sea bass is one of the most important farmed fish species. Slaughter methods vary widely in their welfare implications, with percussion and electrical stunning showing best outcomes.
Fish slaughter welfare is among the most neglected areas in animal agriculture. Sea bass are vertebrates with nociceptors and stress response systems, and evidence supports that poorly designed slaughter causes pain and fear. Live chilling without prior stunning prolongs the time to death while the fish remains conscious and distressed. The European Food Safety Authority recommends stunning before slaughter for farmed fish, but implementation lags significantly behind poultry and mammalian livestock. Pressure from retailers, certifiers, and consumers is the primary mechanism currently driving improvement.