Document type : Press release from the French Ministry of Agriculture and Food
Author: French Ministry of Agriculture and Food
Full text: "In 2022, the crushing and gassing of male chicks will be brought to an end. France will thus join Germany as the first two countries in the world to put an end to the destruction of male chicks. "We are now implementing a long-awaited step forward," announced Julien Denormandie, the French Minister for Agriculture and Food.
On 13 January 2020, the French and German Ministers of Agriculture and Food hosted a meeting of professional poultry organisations, research bodies, companies marketing alternative processes, technical institutes and animal protection associations from both countries at the Ministry of Food and Agriculture in Berlin. This seminar made it possible to establish a formal bilateral partnership and a working framework for 2020-21 covering both applied research and innovation and developments within the industry.
Work to bring the practice of destroying male chicks to a permanent end was ongoing in order to meet the strong expectations of consumers and animal protection associations. Alternatives to the destruction of male chicks have been put in place in both partner countries and all hatcheries are making the necessary investments to put an end to this practice.
A second Franco-German seminar meeting was held on Friday 16 July to share progress and to record the continued collective commitment of the industry and the German and French governments to put an end to the systematic destruction of male chicks throughout the European Union.
In France, a draft decree will be submitted to the Conseil d'État at the end of the summer, specifying that by 1 January 2022, all hatcheries must have either installed or ordered "in ovo sexing" equipment, thereby enabling an end to be brought to the destruction of male chicks. All equipment must be installed and running in all hatcheries by 2022.
The French Government is supporting these strong undertakings by the industry:
- by investing in "in ovo sexing" equipment alongside the sector via the France Relance plan (10 million euros committed);
- by taking this issue to European level. Only through a strong commitment from all those involved, at European level, can this practice of destroying male chicks be brought to an end to as speedily as possible. The French and German ministers will present a joint statement to this effect at the meeting of the Council of Agriculture Ministers on 19 July, will invite the European Commission to support this innovative approach, and solicit the participation of interested Member States.
- by working with all parties to ensure a fair distribution of costs throughout the food chain, particularly by means of the "EGalim 2" law. The development and implementation of sustainable alternatives to the current fate of around 50 million male chicks produced in hatcheries in France remains a major challenge for the laying-hen industry, and this must be addressed by all the links in the chain.
It is not just a matter of sharing the burden of these additional costs but also of raising awareness of the situation in which hatcheries find themselves in order to give them the time they need to amortise their investments.
Press release published in Le Monde on 18 July 2021: La France veut interdire le broyage et le gazage des poussins mâles en 2022
