Good news for male chicks

[Catherine]

The standard practice right now is for hatcheries to kill male chicks at birth, usually by grinding them alive. This is a brutal practice. The United Egg Producers, the largest American egg producing company has committed to end this practice.

http://news.google.ca/news/url?sr=1&ct2=...t=2&at=dt0


It may take years and a lot more pressure, but once a major company commits to change then the whole industry will end up changing.
The male chicks deserve better and so do the females. Let us hope that this is the beginning of better lives for chickens.

[Catslave.]

Here's hoping the the practise is the same in Australia.

[Catherine]

I think we are going to see change. No one is happy about how hatcheries treat new born chicks. Too many of us have seen videos of male chicks tossed live into a grinder.  Once the public knows and objects, the big companies will have to pay attention no matter where in the world they are.

I think Australia already has strong campaigns against cage eggs in the first place. It is all part of treating chickens better.

[LPC]

It's a pity that the company is not implementing this until 2020, but any ultimate reduction in animal suffering is to welcomed.

[Catherine]

I find myself wondering why they are going to take so long to change. Are they hoping that we will forget about it and they can stay the same.

If something is so terrible that it must be stopped, why wouldn't they stop it! Stop it right now! 

Four years is too long. We need to pressure them to change their treatment of chicks right away. I wonder if there are any new petitions out that suggest a more timely response.

[Tobi]

I was also wondering why there has to be such a long wait for these changes! I saw '2017' mentioned, but initially it mentioned '2020' which is four years!
Even the solution isn't perfect, but is a great step forward.

[Catherine]

I just looked at the article again and the 2017 date is for Germany. They are finding a way to do  in-ovo sex selection. I do not know how that works. We need to look into it further.

Unilever took a stand against killing male chicks in 2014 and intends to use in-ovo sex selection. I do not know if they have achieved it yet, but they are an important company.

It is the United Egg Producers who plan to change by 2020. I think they need to move a little faster than that.

[AnimalFamily]

This is disgusting. I had no idea.
Although I am a little skeptical of the whole "in-ovo egg sexing." thing as well.
I would need more info as to the safety of the "termination" process.
I don't completely understand why the male chicks cannot be used for other things, raised humanely of course, then harvested for dog foods etc.?
Also just because "broilers" are bred to be larger, doesn't mean the quality of the meat is any better?
I have eaten roosters and have noticed absolutely no difference in flavor of the meat.
We have different grades of beef and such. The smaller chickens could carry a smaller price tag.
I also find it interesting that most humans would be "grossed" out by fertilized eggs.
Most people I know in my neck of the woods have a rooster with their hens for many reasons.
Therefore we get fertilized eggs.
When collected [as they should be] on a daily basis, that fertilization goes nowhere.
You only see a tiny white dot in your egg yolk and you really have to look to see it.
It doesn't seem to bother anyone I know, lol.

[Catherine]

Quote:I also find it interesting that most humans would be "grossed" out by fertilized eggs.
Most people I know in my neck of the woods have a rooster with their hens for many reasons.
Therefore we get fertilized eggs.
When collected [as they should be] on a daily basis, that fertilization goes nowhere.
You only see a tiny white dot in your egg yolk and you really have to look to see it.
It doesn't seem to bother anyone I know, lol.

We always had eggs like that because we got them from a local chicken ranch. I never considered that a problem.

I have more of a problem with how they do things now with the hens in the tiny cages.

I will look for something about in-ovo egg sexing. I have no idea how they plan to do that.

We don't need big fat chickens that are basically deformed. A healthy male chicken would be healthier as a food source. I doubt anyone can taste a difference.

[AnimalFamily]

I agree.
Even when I [rarely] do have to buy eggs at the store, I only buy free range.
The little extra they charge is a small price to pay for some peace of mind.
I seriously doubt anyone could tell a difference in taste.