Scientific evidence increasingly supports that decapod crustaceans — crabs, lobsters, and shrimp — are sentient and can experience pain, challenging traditional practices in seafood industries.
Decapod crustaceans possess nociceptors and show behavioral responses to harmful stimuli consistent with pain experience. They also exhibit wound-tending behavior and avoidance learning. Despite this, most seafood processing still involves methods — such as live boiling — that would be prohibited for vertebrate animals. Effective stunning methods exist and should be adopted as a minimum standard.