By Paul RinconScience editor, BBC News website
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More than 50 high-profile campaigners and celebrities have called for stronger protection to prevent lobsters and crabs being cooked alive.
They have signed a letter urging Environment Secretary Michael Gove to categorise the crustaceans as sentient organisms in a new Animal Welfare Bill.
The organisers point to mounting scientific evidence that shows the animals can feel pain.
Signatories include presenter Chris Packham and comedian Bill Bailey.
They also include representatives from the RSPCA and the British Veterinary Association.
Establishing whether some animal groups feel pain can take years of scientific research.
But there has been considerable scientific research on sentience in decapods - the crustacean group that includes lobsters and crabs - since Parliament passed the Animal Welfare Act in 2006.
Maisie Tomlinson, from the campaign group Crustacean Compassion, which organised the letter, told BBC News: "It's really not acceptable to be boiling animals alive, to be cutting them up alive.
"All the evidence out there at the moment points to the notion that they're capable of experiencing pain."
The letter to Mr Gove says: "In light of the extreme practices they are subjected to, we call on the government to include decapod crustaceans under the definition of 'animal' in the Animal Welfare Bill (Sentencing and Recognition of Sentience) and in the Animal Welfare Act 2006."
While lobsters and crabs are certainly animals in the biological sense, the letter points out that "in the UK, decapods fall outside of the legal definition of 'animal' in the Animal Welfare Act 2006, and so there is currently no legal requirement for food processors, supermarkets or restaurants to consider their welfare during storage, handling or killing."
It is necessary to either cook or freeze lobsters and crabs quickly after they are killed, because the meat spoils rapidly.
But campaigners say there are now more humane killing methods - as well as ways of stunning the animals into unconsciousness - that have little impact on food preparation.
"There is no economic or culinary reason why decapods cannot be humanely dispatched, yet killing is sometimes preceded by breaking off the legs, head or tail, and is often accomplished by boiling alive," the letter states.
Ms Tomlinson said decapods fulfilled 14 scientific measures for experiencing pain. While there was uncertainty over two remaining criteria, this was because the relevant scientific studies had not yet been carried out.
In a BBC News article published earlier this year, Prof Robert Elwood, from Queen's University Belfast, said numerous experiments showed "rapid avoidance learning, and [crustaceans] giving up highly valuable resources to avoid certain noxious stimuli" - consistent with the idea of pain.
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The 2006 Animal Welfare Act became law just before the European Food and Safety Authority published a report classifying decapod crustaceans as so-called Category One animals, where "the scientific evidence clearly indicates… that animals in those groups are able to experience pain and distress".
The government has launched a public consultation on a new Animal Welfare Bill, and campaigners want to use the opportunity to amend what they see as a significant oversight.
A spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs told BBC News: "We are committed to the very highest standards of animal welfare.
"As the prime minister has set out, we will make the United Kingdom a world leader in the care and protection of animals as we leave the EU.
"We are currently consulting on the draft Bill and will consider responses when bringing the Bill forwards."
More than 23,000 people have already signed a petition online to support the law change.
Signatories to the letter include television presenter Michaela Strachan; Dr Julia Wrathall, chief scientific officer for the RSPCA; the executive director of Humane Society International Claire Bass, University of Sussex neuroscientist Prof Anil Seth; and Prof John Webster, animal husbandry expert at the University of Bristol.
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As an expert in animal behavior and welfare, particularly in the context of decapod crustaceans like lobsters and crabs, I bring to the table a comprehensive understanding of the scientific evidence surrounding their sentience and the ethical concerns related to their treatment. My expertise is grounded in a deep knowledge of the research landscape and a keen awareness of the ongoing discussions in the field.
The recent article by Paul Rincon on the BBC News website highlights a crucial issue involving over 50 high-profile campaigners and celebrities advocating for stronger protection of lobsters and crabs to prevent them from being cooked alive. The campaign is rooted in mounting scientific evidence demonstrating that decapod crustaceans can experience pain. Notable signatories include presenter Chris Packham, comedian Bill Bailey, representatives from the RSPCA, and the British Veterinary Association.
The central argument revolves around the need to categorize decapod crustaceans as sentient organisms in a new Animal Welfare Bill. Despite being animals in the biological sense, the letter points out that, in the UK, decapods fall outside the legal definition of 'animal' in the Animal Welfare Act 2006. This legal gap allows food processors, supermarkets, and restaurants to avoid considering their welfare during storage, handling, or killing.
The campaigners emphasize the urgency of addressing the issue, citing the availability of more humane killing methods and stunning techniques that have minimal impact on food preparation. While it is necessary to cook or freeze lobsters and crabs quickly after they are killed due to rapid meat spoilage, campaigners argue that there is no economic or culinary reason why decapods cannot be humanely dispatched.
Maisie Tomlinson, representing the campaign group Crustacean Compassion, highlights that decapods fulfill 14 scientific measures for experiencing pain, with uncertainty remaining on two criteria due to pending scientific studies. Prof Robert Elwood from Queen's University Belfast supports this perspective, citing experiments showing rapid avoidance learning and behavior consistent with the idea of pain in crustaceans.
The 2006 Animal Welfare Act, which predates the European Food and Safety Authority's classification of decapod crustaceans as Category One animals capable of experiencing pain and distress, is undergoing a public consultation for a new Animal Welfare Bill. Campaigners aim to leverage this opportunity to rectify what they perceive as a significant oversight.
In response to the campaign, a spokesperson for the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs states the government's commitment to the highest standards of animal welfare and mentions the ongoing public consultation on the draft Bill.
The article concludes by highlighting the significant public support for the campaign, with over 23,000 people already signing a petition online to support the proposed law change. The letter's signatories include influential figures such as television presenter Michaela Strachan, Dr. Julia Wrathall from the RSPCA, Claire Bass from Humane Society International, Prof Anil Seth from the University of Sussex, and Prof John Webster, an animal husbandry expert at the University of Bristol.
