Channel catfish farming dominates US aquaculture production, with welfare considerations around disease management, stocking density, and harvest method requiring attention.
Channel catfish welfare considerations extend throughout the production cycle - disease management in open pond systems, appropriate stocking density management, and harvest methods. Seining operations that crowd large numbers of fish into increasingly small areas can cause hypoxia stress even in a hypoxia-tolerant species. Extended air exposure during harvest is a significant welfare concern. Electrical stunning before processing dramatically improves welfare at slaughter. As the largest US aquaculture sector, welfare improvements in catfish production would benefit more fish than in smaller aquaculture segments.