Poultry Welfare at Hatching: Hatchery Practices

Commercial poultry hatcheries process billions of chicks annually using practices that have significant welfare implications from the first hours of life.

Key Facts

Global commercial hatcheries process over 75 billion chicks annually
Male chicks in layer hatcheries are killed at hatch by maceration or gassing as they have no commercial value
Chick transportation from hatcheries involves up to 72 hours without feed or water
In-ovo sexing technology enabling male egg identification before hatching is commercially available
Vaccination and beak trimming in hatcheries cause acute pain without analgesia in conventional systems
Temperature management during transport significantly affects chick welfare and subsequent health

Welfare Considerations

Hatchery welfare encompasses the first hours of every commercial poultry birds life and determines conditions for billions of animals annually. Male layer chick killing represents one of the highest volume welfare-relevant practices in animal agriculture: approximately 7 billion male layer chicks are killed annually worldwide. In-ovo sexing technology that allows sex determination before hatching has now been commercialized and avoids this welfare issue entirely by preventing male eggs from being incubated. Post-hatch transport without feed or water exploits chicks natural yolk reserves but represents a welfare compromise that transport time minimization addresses. Hatchery welfare improvements including in-ovo sexing adoption and improved transport standards represent high-volume welfare gains.

What You Can Do

Support egg producers committed to in-ovo sexing technology eliminating male chick culling
Choose eggs from brands that have adopted in-ovo sexing in their supply chains
Advocate for in-ovo sexing adoption timelines in egg industry welfare commitments
Engage with retailers about their egg supply chain hatchery welfare standards