Crabs are increasingly recognised as sentient animals, raising welfare concerns about their treatment in aquaculture and the seafood industry.
Crabs present a compelling case for extended moral consideration - their behavioural and neurological responses to noxious stimuli parallel those of more clearly sentient animals. Live boiling causes a prolonged period before death during which nociceptive pathways are active. Electrical stunning methods exist that render crabs insensible within milliseconds. The lag between scientific recognition of crustacean sentience and industry practice represents a significant welfare gap that consumers and policy can help close.