Eggs farmed without male chick massacre hit German shops

Eggs farmed by a new method that avoids the killing of hatched male chicks are to hit supermarkets in Germany for the first time in the coming days. 

At present some 45 million male chicks are killed every year in Germany. As they do not lay eggs or build up as much fat as broilers, male chicks are of limited to use to agriculture. 

But a new process enables the sex of a chick to be determined while it is still in the egg, so that male chicks would not be allowed to hatch at all. 

"With this process, there is no need for the continued killing of the male chicks of laying hens," German Agriculture Minister Julia Kloeckner said on Thursday in Berlin. 

She said that the next step should be to roll out the process, which is a world first, to all breeders. It is not quite the time for that move though, the minister added. As such, it was not yet compulsory. 

The new eggs, which are to be slightly more expensive than conventional ones, are to hit the shelves in 223 Berlin supermarkets of the chains Rewe and Penny. 

In the coming year, the eggs are to be made available for purchase in 5,500 supermarkets. (dpa)