Insect farming for food, feed, and other products is growing rapidly, and the welfare implications of farming billions of insects deserve careful consideration given the uncertainty about insect sentience.
Insect farming welfare sits at the frontier of animal welfare science. The precautionary principle suggests taking welfare seriously given the scale of production - even a small probability of morally significant experience in insects becomes highly significant when multiplied by billions of individuals. Black soldier fly larvae show stress responses and behaviour modification under adverse conditions, suggesting some form of nociception. Killing methods - particularly shredding - may cause suffering if insects experience pain. Cold immobilisation before killing is considered more humane by some welfare scientists. As insect farming scales, developing and adopting welfare standards based on the best available evidence is prudent.