Boiling lobsters while they are alive and conscious will be banned as part of a government strategy to improve animal welfare in England, Report informs via The Guardian.
Government ministers say that "live boiling is not an acceptable killing method" for crustaceans and alternative guidance will be published.
The practice is already illegal in Switzerland, Norway and New Zealand. Animal welfare charities say that stunning lobsters with an electric gun or chilling them in cold air or ice before boiling them is more humane.
A ban would build on a law introduced by the Conservatives in 2022, which stated that invertebrates including octopus, crabs and lobsters were sentient and felt pain as much as other animals.
Ben Sturgeon, chief executive of the charity Crustacean Compassion, welcomed the plans, saying: "When live, conscious animals are placed into boiling water, they endure several minutes of excruciating pain. This is torture and completely avoidable. Humane alternatives, like electrical stunning, are readily available."
Other changes in a long-awaited Labour strategy announced on Monday include outlawing hen cages and pig farrowing crates, ending puppy farming, consulting on banning electric shock collars for dogs and introducing humane slaughter requirements for farmed fish.
The proposals also tighten the rules on hunting, with a ban on shooting hares during the breeding season and an end to trail hunting, where an animal-based scent trail is laid for dogs to chase while riders follow on horseback.