Document type : Article published in AgriHebdo (Switzerland)
Author: ATS
Preview: Bio Suisse representatives decided on Wednesday 17 November that by 2026 not one chick will be killed on farms certified under the Bio Suisse label. All eggs must be incubated and male chicks must be kept for fattening.
The federation will rely on dual-purpose chicken breeds for this purpose, Bio Suisse said in a statement on Wednesday 17 November. In ovo technology to determine sex before hatching will be banned. The federation considers the timetable to be ambitious but achievable.
Bio Suisse believes that the focus on dual-purpose hens and the simultaneous ban onin ovo technology demonstrate a clear pathway that can be followed by the entire industry. However, there is a downside to this decision: these breeds consume more feed in order to produce the same products. The prices of organic eggs are therefore likely to rise. With a market share of 29%, organic eggs are the most successful organic product.
By focusing on dual-purpose hens, organic farming is reuniting egg and meat production, which had become separated as a result of the intensification of farming practices, Bio Suisse points out.
Since 2015, the Austrian organic egg sector has ceased the killing of chicks. And German organic associations have turned their attention towards fattening since it became clear that there would be a legal ban on the killing of chicks in Germany from 2022.
