The breakup of agglomerates and bodies suspended in turbulent flows are important phenomena that influence many aspects of modern solidification processing. It is often assumed that breakup operates in high-pressure die casting, wherein molten metal is transported at high speed through a narrow orifice system. To test this assumption, X-ray tomography and electron backscatter diffraction mapping are used to characterise pores, inclusions, and primary α-Al grains in die-cast samples produced with different flow field intensities. Numerical simulations are performed in ProCAST (ESI Group) to quantify the three-dimensional flow fields and to relate the derived quantities to breakage. Increasing the dissipation rate of turbulent kinetic energy is shown to induce a refinement of both non-metallic inclusions and primary α-Al1 grains nucleated in the shot chamber, a phenomenon which is ascribed to breakage. Several breakup mechanisms are discussed, with emphasis on the role of fluid turbulence.