According to a recent Vox article, United Egg Producers, an industry organization representing 95 percent of eggs in the United States, stated it would eliminate the culling of male chicks at affiliated egg-laying hatcheries by 2020. The decision follows negotiations with The Humane League.
This is truly a major announcement, as hundreds of millions of male chicks at egg hatcheries are either ground up alive in macerators, suffocated in garbage bags, or gassed to death because they’re considered useless by the egg industry.
Numerous Mercy For Animals undercover investigations have exposed these cruel acts. Watch.
United Egg Producers will replace cruel culling with the German technology “in-ovo egg sexing.” This will allow farmers to determine the sex of chicks before they develop inside their eggs. Egg producers will be able to terminate the male eggs or use them for pet food or to help make vaccines.
In addition to culling male chicks, factory farms subject millions of egg-laying hens to horrifying conditions. In many cases the birds are crammed into battery cages and never see the light of day.
While welfare improvements are important, the only sure way to eliminate farmed animal suffering is to switch to a compassionate vegan diet.
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