Aquaculture Peri-harvest Insights

The Aquaculture Peri-harvest Insights series is dedicated to exploring one of the most important, yet often overlooked, phases of aquaculture: the peri-harvest period. For the purpose of this series, the peri-harvest period refers to the collective activities occurring immediately before (pre-harvest), during, and immediately after the harvest process (post-harvest). These may include fasting, crowding, capture, handling (which may include grading, pumping, transfer, loading, and offloading), transport, holding, stunning, slaughter and, where relevant, the immediate post-slaughter period.

The decisions made during this critical period can significantly influence aquatic animal welfare, product quality, operational efficiency and consumer confidence. This series, which focuses on aquatic animal welfare, will provide evidence-based insights, practical guidance, emerging research and real-world case studies to help farmers, veterinarians, researchers, processors and the wider aquaculture community better understand and improve welfare during this pivotal stage of production.

🔍 From Fasting to Slaughter—Understanding the Peri-harvest Journey