The question of whether invertebrates are sentient (meaning that they have the capacity for pleasure and pain) is contentious. The answer to this question may have a serious bearing on a number of human practices, from lower-impact behaviours like killing so-called “pests” around the home, to larger-scale policies regarding our treatment of the environment. One application of the invertebrate sentience question that is more directly relevant to food policy is the use of insecticides in agriculture. This paper will argue that a Benthamic “expected utility” formula makes invertebrate sentience a highly important consideration, on the basis that even if the probability that invertebrates are sentient is low, their large numbers render their potential suffering very weighty. Following this, the paper will outline some possible policy changes regarding insecticide use. These changes may go some way towards humans’ discharging their moral obligations towards invertebrates.
