The Way Out: A Report on Ending Chick Killing in the European Union
Animal Society Submits Detailed Report on Chick Culling to the European Commission
Published 16th December 2022
Every year in the European Union (EU), around 330 million male chicks are killed by the egg industry. An estimated further 40 million female ducklings are killed annually in the foie gras industry. This is common practice as these industries see no economic value in ‘surplus’ chicks. Not only is the killing of newly hatched chicks itself morally indefensible, but the brutality of methods used also present profound and unjustifiable animal welfare violations.
Animal Society, alongside a coalition of 18 organisations from across Europe launched by the French animal rights group L214, has written a detailed report to the European Commission. The aim of the report is to address this issue and push for a ban at EU level.
The Commission is in the process of carrying out an impact assessment on a possible ban on the culling of chicks. The report thus contains relevant facts and data, experiences after one year of the ban in Germany and important welfare considerations, as well as tables with available alternatives.
Why an EU-Wide Ban on Chick Culling is Important
Male chicks from laying breeds cannot lay eggs and do not grow large enough to be of value to the meat industry. Female ducklings in foie gras production are also considered to not be economically viable. They do not develop a fatty liver of the same desired size and quality as their male counterparts, a result that is achieved by force-feeding. Foie gras producers are therefore unable to generate a profit from them. For this reason, both male chicks and female ducklings in the poultry industry are systematically killed immediately after hatching.
This cruel practice is still common in most EU member states, although there are now alternatives. One alternative, known as in-ovo sexing, uses technology to identify the sex of a chick before hatching. This can be achieved during development inside the egg, and enables industries to eliminate male embryos at an early stage of development. In-ovo sexing technologies that are currently in use work from the 9th day of incubation. This also raises ethical and welfare concerns due to the embryo’s possible pre-existing sensitivity to pain.
The raising male chicks from laying hen breeds, known as Brüderhähne in Germany, for meat production is another alternative. This alternative to the killing of male chicks is currently being used in Germany, as in-ovo sexing methods were not yet widely available at the time the ban on male chick culling was introduced. Rearing male chickens is also associated with major animal welfare concerns, is cost-intensive and even more harmful to the environment than broiler farming. In addition, there is currently no demand for cockerel meat in Europe, which means that the meat is likely to be exported to African countries, putting additional pressure on a market already flooded with European poultry meat.
A third alternative is so-called ‘dual-purpose’ chickens, which lay enough eggs and develop enough meat to be valuable for both the egg and meat industry. This alternative can be seen as an improvement from welfare perspective, due to the improved health of the chickens. However, dual-purpose breeds are not able to compete with the meat and egg production levels of laying hens and broiler breeds.
A fourth alternative, is plant-based egg alternatives and plant-based protein sources, leading away from animal agriculture in general.
An EU-wide ban on killing chicks has broad support not only from citizens, but also among EU member states, the egg industry and hatcheries who want a level playing field across Europe. Germany, France, Austria and Italy have already stopped the systematic killing of chicks since 2022. In Germany, the ban had already been in effect for a year, which provided valuable reference data.
In 2019, the judges of the German Federal Administrative Court made a landmark ruling regarding the killing of chicks. The court determined that economic reasons alone do not constitute a reasonable justification for the killing of an animal in accordance with the Animal Welfare Act.
Even though the introduction of national bans seen as positive, they only have a limited effect on ending the killing of chicks in Europe. It is still possible for producers to import eggs and young hens from hatcheries in other member states where the culling of male chicks is still permitted.
With the current revision of European animal welfare legislation, the European Commission seeks to bring welfare policies in Europe in line with the latest scientific knowledge. In view of the alternatives to killing chicks that are already available, there is no longer any justification for this unnecessary, unethical and cruel practice.