Slaughter methods for broiler chickens have significant welfare implications for the final moments of billions of birds each year. Understanding current methods, their welfare impacts, and higher welfare alternatives is essential for informed advocacy.
Conventional water bath slaughter imposes significant welfare costs in the final minutes of a chicken's life - shackling, inversion, pre-stun electric shocks, and potential return to consciousness before neck cutting all cause pain and distress. The scale - 1 billion birds per year in the UK alone - makes even marginal improvements in slaughter welfare enormously significant in aggregate. Controlled atmosphere systems, particularly those using inert gases or multi-phase CO2, represent a meaningful welfare improvement that is achievable at commercial scale. The barrier to adoption is cost, not technology. Consumer pressure on retailers and regulatory requirements for higher welfare slaughter standards can drive adoption.