Lobster

Guide Note

Lobster are a variety of shellfish considered a delicacy throughout much of the world. Their moist meat is flavorful and tender and is popular boiled and steamed, most prominently in New England.

Fast Facts

1. Lobster is a $1.8 billion per year industry
2. Contains fewer calories than chicken or steak
3. Debate persists about whether lobsters feel pain
4. 1876: First Lobster Newberg
5. 1894: First Lobster Thermidor

Lobsters are often dropped into boiling hot water while still alive. Chefs, connoisseurs and animal rights activists have long debated whether the live animal can feel pain from this process. Several studies have been released, none with conclusive results.

A 2005 Norwegian study contends that a lobster's nervous system is too rudimentary to process pain. Several further studies, one in Scotland and one in Northern Ireland, however, suggest that most crustaceans likely feel pain and express a strong inclination to avoid it.

The simplest and likely pain-free way to kill a lobster is to angle knife directly above its head and to quickly thrust down, severing the head and all present nerve receptors.