When thrown into a pot of boiling water it can take up to 35-45 seconds for them to die and when dismembered, their nervous systems can stay active for up to an hour. Without shock, these experiences must be excruciatingly painful. PETA was the first organization to film undercover in a lobster-processing factory.
[and] feels all the pain until its nervous system is destroyed” during cooking. Don't heat up the water just yet, though. Anyone who has ever boiled a lobster alive can attest that, when dropped into scalding water, lobsters whip their bodies wildly and scrape the sides of the pot in a desperate attempt to escape.
Most likely, yes, say animal welfare advocates. Lobsters belong to a family of animals known as decapod crustaceans that also includes crabs, prawns, and crayfish.
“Nope! A sound can emit from the shells of the lobsters — a high-pitched sound — but it's due to steam escaping through a fissure in the shell, not the lobsters 'screaming,'” she explained. This doesn't necessarily mean the cooking process is pain-free for the lobster.
Lobsters don't have vocal cords, and even if in agony, they cannot vocalise. The high pitched sound made by an overheating lobster is caused by expanding air rushing out of small holes in lobsters' bodies, like a whistle being blown. A dead lobster will “scream” just as loudly as if it was living.
The Lacey Act
But it also eventually made it a federal crime to boil a live lobster. The Lacey Act reads it is a federal crime “to possess any fish or wildlife taken, possessed, transported, or sold in violation of any law or regulation of any State or in violation of any foreign law or Indian tribal law.”
Animal-rights activists and some scientists argue that lobsters' central nervous systems are complex enough that they can feel pain. There is no conclusive evidence about whether lobsters can feel pain.
Unlike some seafood restaurants, Red Lobster does not boil lobsters alive. Our culinary professionals are trained to humanely end the lobster's life moments before they are cooked so our guests get the freshest, most delicious lobsters.
While there is no absolute consensus, there is a great deal of scientific evidence that indicates lobsters can feel pain. So strong is this evidence, that it is already against the law to boil them alive in a number of countries including Switzerland, Norway and New Zealand.
While mammals and birds possess the prerequisite neural architecture for phenomenal consciousness, it is concluded that fish lack these essential characteristics and hence do not feel pain.
The wild wriggling and squirming fish do when they're hooked and pulled from the water during catch-and-release fishing isn't just an automatic response—it's a conscious reaction to the pain they feel when a hook pierces their lips, jaws, or body.
Putting cold-blooded animals like crustaceans (or insects) into a freezer or in icy water numbs them, and they don't seem to have pain receptors that react to cold (they do live at the bottom of the ocean, after all).
Boiling lobsters and other crustaceans alive is already illegal in countries such as Switzerland, Norway and New Zealand.
When the pot is ready, grasp the lobster by the back and plunge it headfirst into the boiling water. Cover and simmer 7-10 minutes for the first pound, and 2-3 minutes for each additional pound.
Undercooking lobster makes it gelatinous, while overcooking it makes it rubbery and dry. To properly cook lobster, use a large pot and fill it with water and coarse salt. Once the water boils, place the lobster into the pot, immersing it headfirst.
Plunging them into boiling water, freezing them or 'drowning' them in fresh water are not humane.
Lobsters are not poisonous if they die before cooking, but you should cook them quickly. Many lobsters sold commercially are killed and frozen before cooking. Lobsters and other crustaceans do spoil rapidly after death, which is why many buyers insist on receiving them alive.
Boil the lobster for 10 minutes for the first 1-lb of weight and then 3 more minutes for each extra pound. A 2-lb lobster will be done in 13 minutes, a 3-lb lobster in 16 minutes. Once cooked, drain the lobster immediately and serve hot with some melted butter on the side for dipping.
Some say the hiss that sounds when crustaceans hit the boiling water is a scream (it's not, they don't have vocal cords).
Lobsters and other shellfish have harmful bacteria naturally present in their flesh. Once the lobster is dead, these bacteria can rapidly multiply and release toxins that may not be destroyed by cooking. You therefore minimise the chance of food poisoning by cooking the lobster alive.
On that basis, he concludes that all vertebrates, including fish, probably experience pain, but invertebrates (e.g. crustaceans) apart from cephalopods probably do not experience pain.
"Quickly plunge lobsters head-first into the boiling water... Boil for 15 minutes," the recipe then instructs. It's the tried-and-trusted method for many of us with any experience of cooking lobster - and there are dozens of similar recipes online.
A researcher in animal behaviour recommends people kill their lobsters before cooking them, after extensive research suggests crustaceans can feel pain. Robert Elwood, professor emeritus of animal behaviour at Queen's University in Northern Ireland, has spent more than a decade researching the issue.
In reality, freezing and thawing live lobsters may be safe, but it simply isn't worth the risk of toxins developing as a result of the process. Safety aside, freezing and thawing lobster prior to cooking it will lead to enzymes leaching into the meat, resulting in a mushy, unappetizing texture.