Carp are the most widely farmed fish in the world globally. Understanding their welfare needs is essential given the enormous scale of their production.
Carp farming welfare is an enormous and largely ignored issue. Given the scale of production - over 30 million tonnes annually - even small welfare improvements per fish would aggregate to enormous total welfare gains. Carp are typically managed with less welfare consideration than salmonids: denser stocking, poorer water quality management, and minimal attention to pre-slaughter welfare. The live fish trade, common in some markets, involves transport and holding in conditions that cause chronic stress and injury. As fish welfare science advances and regulatory pressure increases in major markets, carp welfare improvement is likely to become an important focus. Early investment in welfare standards development would accelerate progress.