Disease is the primary cause of shrimp mortality in aquaculture, causing enormous welfare and economic losses. Biosecurity and early detection are the most effective management approaches.
The welfare status of shrimp remains scientifically uncertain but there is increasing evidence that crustaceans have nociceptive systems capable of processing harmful stimuli. Disease outbreaks in shrimp farms cause mass mortality events — potentially involving tens of millions of animals — under conditions of deteriorating water quality and physiological stress. Whether individual shrimp experience suffering analogous to that of vertebrates is debated, but the precautionary principle supports efforts to minimise disease and improve water quality standards. Antibiotic misuse adds the broader welfare concern of antimicrobial resistance affecting all species including humans.