👉I call on Delhaize Louvain-la-Neuve to inform consumers transparently by placing a large, clearly visible sign near lobster tanks stating:

“BOILING OR CUTTING LOBSTERS ALIVE CAUSES SEVERE SUFFERING.”

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Nature may have intended to protect lobsters by making their flesh toxic after death, yet humans have found ways around this—cooking them alive.

What do these creatures have to endure before ending up on consumers' plates? Lobsters are thrown into containers while still alive, boiled alive, declawed, nicked, exposed to extreme heat, chilled, gassed, stunned, drowned, and even cut apart—head, tail, or entire body—while still living. Do you really need more to understand what a horror story looks like?

There is no need for fictional thrillers—just visit a Delhaize store and look at the lobsters confined in tanks, silently waiting for their fate.

You may hear arguments claiming that lobsters do not feel pain or lack consciousness. These claims are no more credible than those once made by the tobacco industry, denying the harm caused by smoking.

A 2021 report by the London School of Economics concludes that several common practices cause suffering in lobsters and should be banned, including:

• removing one or both claws (declawing),
• boiling alive,
• slowly raising water temperature,
• separating the abdomen from the thorax (tailing),
• separating the head from the thorax (tailing),
• any form of live dismemberment,
• freshwater immersion (osmotic shock). 

👉I call on Delhaize Louvain-la-Neuve to inform consumers transparently by placing a large, clearly visible sign near lobster tanks stating:

“BOILING OR CUTTING LOBSTERS ALIVE CAUSES SEVERE SUFFERING.”

👉I also call on consumers who share these concerns to reconsider shopping at Delhaize Louvain-la-Neuve until appropriate measures are taken.

👉Finally, I invite everyone to support this initiative by signing the petition addressed to Delhaize Louvain-la-Neuve.

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A scientific note on pain in lobsters

A 2021 report by the London School of Economics reviewed over 300 scientific studies to assess evidence of sentience in marine animals used for food, including lobsters. Sentience was evaluated using eight criteria, such as the presence of nociceptors, integrative brain regions, behavioural responses to injury and threat, and reactions to local anaesthetics.

The authors conclude that crustaceans, including lobsters, should be regarded as sentient animals and included in animal welfare legislation, as well as in any future laws concerning animal sentience.

There is strong evidence that the following practices cause suffering in lobsters:

• removing one or both claws (declawing),
• boiling alive,
• slowly raising the temperature of the water,
• separating the abdomen from the thorax (tailing),
• separating the head from the thorax,
• any form of live dismemberment,
• freshwater immersion (osmotic shock).

As recommended in the report, these practices should be banned. However, this list is not exhaustive. Other commonly used methods also cause suffering. For example, keeping lobsters alive on ice before plunging them into boiling water may reduce the duration of suffering, but it does not eliminate it—lobsters can remain alive for up to a minute or more under such conditions.

According to an article in BBC Science Focus, lobsters release cortisol—the same stress hormone produced by humans when experiencing pain. Research also suggests that crustaceans may experience anxiety-like states, which can be reduced using medications similar to those used in humans. Brain activity measurements during electric shocks have shown increases in neurotransmitters such as serotonin, which in humans is associated with stress and anxiety.

When live lobsters are placed in boiling water, they exhibit clear signs of distress: their tails thrash, and they attempt to escape. Studies indicate that lobsters can remain alive for up to three minutes in these conditions—an extended period for such an intense and distressing experience. According to Sentient Media, the process can be so disturbing that some chefs choose to leave the room while it occurs.

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👉Ask Delhaize to tell consumers the truth:
BOILING OR CUTTING LOBSTERS ALIVE CAUSES SEVERE SUFFERING