An estimated 7 billion male chicks are killed worldwide each year as alternatives to chick culling become increasingly available
LOS ANGELES — For decades, chick culling, the routine killing of newly hatched male chicks because they cannot lay eggs and are not considered profitable by the egg industry, has been treated as an unavoidable part of egg production. An estimated 7 billion newly hatched male chicks, approximately 200 every second, are killed worldwide each year.
But as technologies and other alternatives become increasingly available, that is beginning to change. In-ovo sexing technology can identify the sex of an embryo before hatching, providing one pathway for eliminating the need to kill male chicks after they are born. The technology is already being used commercially, and countries and companies are beginning to move away from chick culling. Yet despite these advances, billions of newly hatched male chicks continue to be killed each year, raising questions about why the practice persists when alternatives are available.
A new Mercy For Animals investigation provides a firsthand look at chick culling inside a commercial hatchery.
The investigation documents newly hatched male chicks being forcibly separated from female chicks and killed shortly after hatching. Depending on the facility, common methods of chick culling include maceration and gassing. The investigation also documented deformed or unsold female chicks being discarded through the same process.
The findings come as chick culling begins to change elsewhere. Germany and France have banned the practice, while in-ovo sexing technology has reached commercial use in markets, including the United States and Brazil. Canada has also seen the development of technology capable of determining sex as early as day four of incubation.
“Every year, billions of chicks are killed simply because they are born male,” said Arash Yomtobian, president and CEO of Mercy For Animals. The technology to end this practice already exists. There is no justification for allowing it to continue.”
“Given the serious ethical concerns created by traditional chick culling, it is very promising to see the advancements in in-ovo sexing technologies,” said Andrew Knight, veterinary professor of animal welfare. “MRI with AI approaches have achieved more than 99% accuracy, processing times under one second and costs that average only one cent per table egg. More importantly, these technologies are able to identify male embryos prior to day 13, meaning that they are very unlikely to experience any pain. With hatcheries quickly adopting the technology in Europe and now the United States, we can eliminate chick culling in the near future.”
“Most people have never heard of chick culling, despite the enormous scale of the practice,” Yomtobian said. “Mercy For Animals wants to change that. By helping more people understand what is happening and what alternatives exist, we can build the public support needed to move the industry toward ending chick culling.”
Through Crack the System, a new global campaign, Mercy For Animals is calling for an end to chick culling and supports policies and industry action that move egg production away from the routine killing of newly hatched male chicks.
For more information or to schedule an interview, contact Ronnika A. McFall at [email protected].
Media Resources
Link to the investigation website (includes B-roll and media reel of footage)
Link to images, videos, expert statements and media assets
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Mercy For Animals is a leading international nonprofit working to end industrial animal agriculture by constructing a just and sustainable food system. Active in Brazil, Canada, India, Mexico, Southeast Asia, and the United States, the organization has conducted over 100 investigations of factory farms and slaughterhouses, influenced over 500 corporate policies, and helped pass historic legislation to ban cages for farmed animals. Learn more at MercyForAnimals.org.
