News
Beneath the shell, a sensitive being: the lobster
Published by the BESA team
May 13, 2026
Every summer, millions of lobsters are caught, transported, held, and slaughtered in Quebec and across Canada. Their suffering rarely enters public debate, and is even more rarely reflected in laws recognizing animals’ basic needs. Yet recent studies clearly show that lobsters are sentient animals capable of experiencing pain, stress, and fear.
To help reduce the suffering inflicted on lobsters, BESA is launching a public awareness and advocacy campaign.
Why lobsters?
Lobsters occupy a particular place in our societies: they are among the few animals we consume commercially who are sold alive (especially in supermarkets) and then killed by consumers themselves at home.
In Quebec, there are no specific regulations protecting lobsters regarding transport, holding, and slaughter. They may be stacked alive on ice, kept out of water for long periods, and boiled alive—practices that scientific research considers to cause entirely avoidable suffering and agony.
This lack of a legal framework makes lobsters among the most exploited and least protected animals. It stands in contradiction to current scientific knowledge and to the growing desire in our society to strengthen protections for animals.
A lobster in a tank at a Quebec supermarket. Photograph by Hailey Oldfield.
What was done last summer
The Lobsters Campaign, launched last summer at the initiative of our social media manager and board member for communications, Rachel Therrien, aimed to break the silence surrounding this reality. The campaign included the following actions:
- Sending open letters to various grocery chains in Quebec that sell live lobsters, to highlight the reality faced by these animals and to call for the abolition of these practices
- Public awareness actions at grocery stores to inform the public about lobster sentience
- Calling on the public and decision-makers to address the inconsistency between current scientific knowledge and outdated practices still permitted
This campaign sparked discussions (sometimes uncomfortable ones) and highlighted a major blind spot in animal welfare.
What the campaign revealed
The conversations that followed the campaign bore out what we have long observed:
- Many people are unaware that lobsters are sentient beings
- Several believe, incorrectly, that current practices are already regulated
- The welfare of aquatic animals remains largely excluded from public debate
In other words, the campaign confirmed that the issue is not only the cruelty of these practices, but also how normalized they have become.
A lobster in a supermarket aquarium. Photograph by Hailey Oldfield.
What we want
BESA is calling for concrete and realistic changes, including:
- Explicit recognition of crustacean sentience within Quebec’s regulatory frameworks, in line with current knowledge of their biology
- Banning the cruelest commercial practices, such as the sale of live lobsters in grocery stores to individuals and restaurateurs
- Requiring the use of slaughter methods recognized as reducing suffering, including banning killing by boiling
- Greater transparency and increased accountability from both industry and public authorities
These are basic measures aligned with scientific evidence and already implemented elsewhere. Switzerland, Norway, and New Zealand have banned placing live lobsters into boiling water without prior stunning, recognizing their sentience. In the United Kingdom, England is also preparing to ban this practice. The measure, expected to be implemented by 2030, would also apply to crustaceans and cephalopod mollusks—including octopuses—all recognized as sentient beings under British law. In Italy, courts consider storing lobsters on ice to be treatment incompatible with animal safety and welfare.
And now?
The Lobsters campaign did not end last summer. It is part of a broader effort to expand how we think about animal welfare and to include all sentient animals—including those who live underwater.
Continuing to ignore their suffering is a choice, not an inevitability. Solutions exist. Political will, however, must catch up and demand their implementation.
At BESA, we will continue speaking out, informing the public, and demanding real changes for animals forgotten and suffering in silence.
For them, you can take action 🦞 !
The lack of laws protecting lobsters in Quebec is not a fatality. Other countries around the world have shown us that coherent legislation, aligned with our understanding of lobster biology, is entirely possible.
But it’s up to us to bring about this change, to make our MPs, our grocery stores, and our restaurants understand that this change is possible, and that it’s necessary.
On this page, you’ll find everything you need to contact your representatives and the businesses in your area!
So, on your marks? Get set? Go 🎉!
🦞 It’s your turn!
Click on the different options to find letter templates and resources!
Send a letter to your elected officials
Send a letter to your restaurant or grocery store
Share our posts on social media
How to keep lobster off your plate
Email your elected officials
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Send a letter to your restaurant or grocery store
Here, you can download letter templates to fill out and print for sending by mail.
Share our posts on social media
Give those around you the opportunity to learn more about lobsters, and to take action for them!
How to keep lobster off your plate
The best way to respect the well-being of lobsters is still to leave them of our plate! Another great opportunity to discover plant-based recipes?
Plant-based... lobster 🦞🥬? Give it a try at home, it's easy!
Vegan Lobster! (Heart of palm with garlic butter)
(From It Doesn’t Taste Like Chicken)
Plant-based recipes inspired by seafood 🌊!
On the Vegan Pratique website (french content)
100% plant-based seafood recipes
A book by Eva Zink (french content)
More plant-based recipes for every taste, made in Quebec 🥗!
Catch it on Radio-Canada or on their personal website! (french content)
Timeless, with excellent cookbooks!
All of Eve-Lyne Auger’s recipes and books! (french content)
🎉 Thank you for taking action for lobsters ! 🦞
You want to do more for them ?
Whether it’s by reducing your consumption of animal products, or by using your passion and talents to defend their rights, there are many ways to help animals in Quebec.
Discover the best ways to act simply, and at your own pace, for animals!
CONTACT
GALLERY
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- Plus de 7 000 000 de cochons sont tués au Québec chaque année. Beaucoup de cochons vivent en cage ou enfermés, sans jamais voir le jour.
