Activism & Animals Dormant Updated Sep 19, 2026
The fight to end male chick culling
Where it stands, Sep 19, 2026 Mercy For Animals said Norway adopted in-ovo sexing without regulatory pressure in 2023 and its Meat and Poultry Association now plans to phase out chick culling entirely by July 2027.
Hatcheries worldwide kill an estimated 7 billion male chicks a year by maceration or gassing because they cannot lay eggs, but in-ovo sexing technology that identifies a chick's sex inside the egg before hatching is already commercial in the US and Brazil. Germany and France have banned routine chick culling and Italy's ban takes effect December 31, 2026, while the practice stays legal and widespread in the US. This storyline tracks whether US producers adopt the technology and whether more countries ban culling outright.
What the brief said to watch
- Raised Sep 19, 2026, no date set Norway's Meat and Poultry Association plans to phase out chick culling entirely by July 2027 [111].
- Due Dec 31, 2026 Italy's ban on routine male chick culling takes effect December 31, 2026 [130].
The story so far
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Sep 19, 2026 Latest
Mercy For Animals said Norway adopted in-ovo sexing without regulatory pressure in 2023 and its Meat and Poultry Association now plans to phase out chick culling entirely by July 2027. A poll cited by the group found over 70% of surveyed US consumers say the egg industry should find an alternative to culling male chicks.
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Sep 18, 2026
Mercy For Animals released new undercover footage from inside a commercial hatchery for its Crack the System campaign, showing newly hatched male chicks forced from females and killed by maceration or gassing within hours, alongside deformed or unsold female chicks discarded the same way. Investigator Ricardo said none of the chicks were spared.
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Sep 10, 2026
AgFunderNews reported in-ovo sexing reached 40% market penetration in the EU, up from zero five years ago, driven by bans in Germany and France and voluntary phase-outs in Switzerland and Norway. United Egg Producers, representing 90% of US egg production, said it remains committed to adopting the technology only once it is cost-competitive with manual sexing, with no binding date attached. Mercy For Animals released new undercover footage from a Brazilian hatchery showing male chicks ground up alive, timed to push US producers toward the technology.
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Sep 9, 2026
Mercy For Animals released undercover hatchery footage showing newly hatched male chicks separated from females and killed by maceration or gassing, timed to a campaign pushing US egg producers toward in-ovo sexing technology that can flag males before day 13, before they are likely to feel pain. In-ovo sexing is already in commercial use in the US and Brazil, and Italy's ban on chick culling takes effect December 31, 2026.
This fight, in numbers
Every sourced figure the brief has published on this storyline, newest first.
- nearly 8 billion chicks killed worldwide every year, equal to more than 200 a second, per a Faunalytics report
- over 70% of polled US consumers say the egg industry should find an alternative to culling male chicks
- 7 billion male chicks killed worldwide each year because they can't lay eggs
- 200 male chicks killed every second globally, by Mercy For Animals' estimate
- 40% of EU layer flocks now covered by in-ovo sexing, up from zero five years ago
- 7 billion male chicks killed worldwide every year because they can't lay eggs
- 90% of US egg production represented by United Egg Producers, which has committed to the technology only once it's economical
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