The welfare of farmed Atlantic salmon at slaughter has received increasing scientific and regulatory attention, with percussion and electrical stunning now established as more humane alternatives to asphyxiation.
Salmon slaughter represents one of the highest-impact welfare issues in aquaculture, given the enormous numbers of fish processed annually and the prolonged suffering associated with traditional asphyxiation methods. The neuroscience of fish pain and consciousness now strongly supports that salmon experience distress and potentially pain during asphyxiation. Electrical and percussive stunning eliminate or dramatically reduce this suffering at low additional cost. Regulatory requirements for effective stunning are increasingly common in leading producing countries, but implementation and monitoring remain variable. Consumer choice for certified products drives adoption.