Decapod crustaceans - such as lobsters and crabs - are sentient invertebrate animals capable of experiencing emotions, pain and suffering. Yet these sensitive animals regularly experience prolonged and painful deaths in the UK, such as being boiled alive whilst completely conscious, which can take many agonising minutes to die.

At The Animal Law Foundation, we believe that these prolonged and painful deaths are contrary to the law and that safer and faster killing methods exist. We have outlined this in our legal letter to the government, calling on them to immediately enforce the Welfare of Animals at the Time of Killing Regulations 2015 (WATOK or Welfare at the Time of Killing Regulations 2015) for decapod crustaceans, along with publishing specific guidance that outlines legally compliant higher welfare killing methods for decapod crustaceans.

We have also been calling on the government to remove any misleading statements. For example when these animals were recognised as sentient by the government, it claimed that industry practices would not be affected. We do not agree with this position - not only does the law require the change, the recognition of their sentience should demand it.

This is all in the context of our 2023 YouGov poll which unveiled that 61% of the British public think it is unacceptable to cook decapod crustaceans (such as crabs and lobsters) by boiling them while still alive. This increased to 78% of Brits when they were asked to consider if the decapod crustaceans could feel pain during the process - which scientific consensus confirms they do. You can view the results in full here.