Pre-slaughter handling and killing methods for farmed salmon have come under increasing scientific and regulatory scrutiny, with significant progress in developing and adopting more humane protocols.
Salmon pre-slaughter welfare represents one of the most significant progress areas in fish welfare. The scale of salmon farming - over a billion individual fish slaughtered annually - means that improvements in slaughter methods affect enormous numbers of animals. Evidence-based comparison of methods has demonstrated clear welfare rankings: CO2 or asphyxiation cause prolonged distress; percussive stunning or high-voltage electrical stunning can induce rapid unconsciousness. Regulatory progress in Norway, Scotland, and other major producing nations has driven adoption of improved methods. Consumer demand for welfare certification increasingly supports this progress.