Examining welfare challenges specific to eel aquaculture including handling stress, crowding and slaughter practices.
Eel aquaculture sits at an uncomfortable intersection of conservation crisis, welfare neglect and cultural demand. The reliance on wild-caught juveniles for farming already places pressure on wild populations; the farming conditions often fail basic welfare standards; and the slaughter methods in common use have been identified by welfare scientists as causing significant acute suffering. Eels exhibit strong stress responses, have been shown in laboratory settings to perform learned avoidance tasks consistent with pain experience, and their neurological capacity for suffering warrants serious consideration. Improvements to farming density, handling protocols and slaughter method represent the minimum welfare standard that the eel aquaculture industry should adopt.