Sheep transport and slaughter are welfare-significant events affecting millions of animals annually in the UK, with important welfare gains available through better regulation and practice.
Sheep transport and slaughter represent concentrated welfare events that deserve the same scrutiny as on-farm conditions. The UK ban on long-distance live export was a significant welfare improvement, removing some of the worst transport welfare impacts from UK sheep. Pre-slaughter welfare in lairage and abattoir depends critically on low-stress handling, appropriate facilities, and effective stunning. The ongoing exemption for religious slaughter without stunning remains a contested welfare issue; investment in improving welfare for the majority of sheep in conventional slaughter - through CCTV, effective stunning verification, and low-stress handling - is achievable without restricting religious practice.