The time has finally come to say enough to one of the darkest pages of the egg industry. With the publication of the operational guidelines in the Official Journal, Italy is preparing to definitively ban the killing of male chicks starting from 31 December 2026. An aberrant practice that still costs the lives of around 34 million chicks every year in our country alone.
Even today, male chicks born in hatcheries intended for egg production suffer a terrible fate. Incapable of laying eggs and considered unsuitable for the meat supply chain due to their physical characteristics, they are systematically eliminated in the first 24 hours of life through brutal methods: shredding through maceration or gasification.
The images that animal rights associations have brought to the attention of public opinion over the years are difficult to forget: live chicks transported on mechanical conveyors to maceration machinery, treated like industrial waste. An unacceptable violence that is finally coming to an end.
How in ovo sexing technology works
The legislative decree of 7 December 2023, now completed by the newly published guidelines, requires poultry companies to equip themselves with egg sexing systems by the end of 2026. This technology, already adopted in several European countries such as Germany and France, allows the sex of the embryo to be determined before hatching.
In practice, it will be possible to identify the sex of the chick by the 14th day of incubation, a period in which the embryo has not yet developed the ability to perceive pain or discomfort, as confirmed by scientific literature. There are various technologies available – optical, chemical and genetic – that allow us to avoid the birth of male chicks, thus eliminating culling after hatching.
With this measure, our country finally reaches France, Germany, Luxembourg, Austria and Belgium, where the ban is already operational or in an advanced stage of implementation. A choice that represents not only an ethical but also a technological progress for the entire intensive chicken farming sector.
The animal rights associations, which have been fighting for this result for years, welcomed the publication of the guidelines with satisfaction. LAV underlines that this is a “historic step forward” even if there are critical issues.
Some critical issues remain
Despite the importance of the goal achieved, some gray areas remain. The male chicks that are born by mistake – it is estimated between 350 thousand and 1.4 million every year – can still be killed, albeit with a method considered less violent: the inhalation of carbon dioxide instead of shredding.
Furthermore, there is also a transparency issue. The decree allows producers to indicate on the packaging that their eggs “do not come from farms that slaughter male chicks”. However, this wording is ambiguous: companies will be able to continue using it even if they eliminate chicks born by mistake during sexing.
Animal Equality, which launched a petition in 2020 to stop this practice, declared:
After months of reminders, street demonstrations and pressure directed at the Government, an important signal has arrived. It is certainly an extraordinary result, but our work does not stop here. We will ensure that the legislation is applied seriously and that no chick, not even those born by mistake, is treated as waste anymore.
Even LAV, while celebrating this result, invites us not to stop here and to look further:
Every animal raised undergoes manipulation and imposed deprivation. Real change will only come when we choose to no longer finance their exploitation.
The ban on the slaughter of male chicks undoubtedly represents an important victory for animal welfare, but it also reminds us how much still remains to be done. All animals in intensive farming suffer unnatural living conditions and forced manipulation, and are then destined for slaughter.
There is still a long road ahead, but this first concrete step demonstrates that when collective sensitivity is combined with the pressure of associations and political will, change is possible.
Sources: Official Journal / Animal Equality / Lav
