Open Letter

Open Letter to Dame Angela Eagle and Baroness Hayman of Ullock regarding banning chick culling as part of the Animal Welfare Strategy

Dear Ministers,

As a collective group of parliamentarians and animal advocates, we are writing to ensure that a commitment to end male chick culling and transition to in-ovo sexing technology is included in the forthcoming animal welfare strategy. This is a crucial opportunity to reaffirm the UK’s place as a world leader in animal welfare, a title that is currently very much at risk.

Every year, an estimated 45 million male chicks are killed in their first days of life because they cannot lay eggs and are not suitable for meat production. This practice, known as “hatch and dispatch”, is both unnecessary and incompatible with the UK’s values and reputation as a nation that cares deeply about the welfare of animals.

Growing consensus in Parliament and beyond

The Government’s own Animal Welfare Committee has previously recommended that male chick culling should end “as soon as reliable, accurate methods for sexing eggs prior to hatch are available”. Those methods now exist. In-ovo sexing technology, which identifies the sex of an embryo before hatching, is already in commercial use in Germany, France, the United States and more. When performed at an early stage, this process eliminates the possibility of pain perception altogether.

As Daniel Zeichner MP, who served as Minister of State for Food Security and Rural Affairs from July 2024 to September 2025, said: “We very much welcome the UK egg industry’s interest in the development of day zero sexing technology”. We must now move forward on this issue, and the upcoming animal welfare strategy is the perfect opportunity to do so.

In recent months, parliamentarians have consistently backed an end to male chick culling. In July 2025, MPs, Peers and organisations wrote to you and former Minister for animal welfare, Daniel Zeichner MP, to demand action, demonstrating strong cross-party support and backing from across the farming and animal welfare communities to end male chick culling in this country as soon as possible. 

In September, Irene Campbell MP led the very first debate in the House of Commons on the topic, with support from several of her peers. Regular parliamentary questions, representing the concerns of constituents, have repeatedly demanded action in this area.

The same can be said of the UK public. Recent research shows that around three-quarters (76%) of Brits would pay more to switch to “cull-free” eggs – eggs from farms which do not cull male chicks – if they were available. Furthermore, 60% say they would pay 25p more for a box of six “cull-free” eggs – four times more than would be necessary. 

Falling behind other countries

Across Europe, governments have worked constructively with industry to achieve successful transitions. In Germany and France, bans were introduced in collaboration with producers, and the result has been a system that is fairer, more humane and more aligned with consumer expectations. Countries including Italy and the Netherlands are set to follow suit. 

The UK is now falling behind both international best practice and public opinion. This is a matter we can set straight in the upcoming animal welfare strategy.

The impact of a ban on male chick culling

 We recognise that questions have been raised about the potential impact of a ban, including on the availability of feed for raptors and exotic pets. However, recent research demonstrates that viable and ethical alternatives already exist and should be prioritised. These solutions ensure that animal welfare standards are upheld without compromising other parts of the sector. With a suitable transition period before a ban on chick culling comes into force, those sectors reliant on dead chick for animal feed will have time to explore and develop new and more ethical supply chains.

It has also been suggested that dual-purpose breeds could offer a solution, but this is not a sustainable or welfare-positive approach. Early findings from ongoing research support this, highlighting welfare and productivity challenges that make such breeds unsuitable for large-scale production. For these reasons, while dual-purpose breeds may well find niche markets in future, they are not a commercially viable substitute for existing layer and broiler varieties and hence should not be used as part of a rationale to prevent or delay the implementation of in-ovo sexing technology within the UK’s existing hatcheries.

Denying animals the Five Freedoms

This is not only a moral issue – it is a welfare issue, and therefore should be made a priority within the animal welfare strategy. Research from the Technical University of Munich indicates that chicken embryos as early as developmental day 13 are capable of processing nociceptive stimuli, suggesting the potential for pain perception at or shortly after hatching. This makes clear that current practices are not only ethically indefensible, but may cause unnecessary suffering even within the brief lifespan of these animals.

Moreover, the “Five Freedoms” of animal welfare affirm that animals should be free to express normal, species-specific behaviours. By ending the lives of male chicks immediately after hatching, with only a brief life within a highly mechanised industrial process, we deny them the opportunity to experience those basic freedoms and express normal behaviour. Their welfare is therefore compromised. The continued acceptance of this practice runs counter to the very principles that underpin the UK’s animal welfare framework.

A critical opportunity

The forthcoming animal welfare strategy provides an opportunity for the Government to demonstrate real leadership – to show that the UK’s commitment to high welfare standards is not just rhetoric, but reality. A clear commitment to ending male chick culling and transitioning to in-ovo sexing technology would confirm that the UK remains at the forefront of global efforts to build a food system based not only on efficiency, but on compassion and integrity.

We therefore urge you to seize this opportunity to end hatch and dispatch, working with producers, retailers and welfare experts to implement the transition swiftly and successfully. With clear leadership, the UK can once again set the standard others follow.

As a nation of animal lovers, this commitment within the animal welfare strategy is an essential next step, one that we implore you to take.

Thank you for taking the time to read this. We look forward to hearing from you.

Yours sincerely,

Dame Joanna Lumley

Chris Packham CBE

Dr Marc Abraham OBE

Dave Spikey 

Irene Campbell MP

Shockat Adam MP

Dr Scott Arthur MP

Paula Barker MP

Baroness Bennett of Manor Castle

Bob Blackman MP

Baroness Boycott

Lord Browne of Ladyton

Ariane Burgess MSP

Baroness Burt of Solihull

Ian Byrne MP

Baroness Cass

Sarah Champion MP

Maggie Chapman MSP

Foysol Choudhury MSP

Ellie Chowns MP

Alex Cole-Hamilton MSP

Steve Darling MP

Neil Duncan-Jordan MP

Alex Easton MP

Cat Eccles MP

Olly Glover MP

Ross Greer MSP

Baroness Healy of Primrose Hill

Lord Hendy

Pippa Heylings MP

Baroness Jones of Moulsecoomb

Ruth Jones MP

Monica Lennon MSP

Kerry McCarthy MP

John McDonnell MP

Stuart McMillan MSP

Rachael Maskell MP

Lord McNally

Nav Mishra MP

Carol Mochan MSP

Abtisam Mohamed MP

Manuela Perteghella MP

Baroness Prashar of Runnymede

Bell Ribeiro-Addy MP

Lord Rees of Ludlow

Baroness Redfern

Lord Sikka

Vikki Slade MP

Alex Sobel MP

Ian Sollom MP

Lord Stone of Blackheath

Lord Strathcarron

Paul Sweeney MSP

Michelle Thomson MSP

Michael Wheeler MP

Elena Whitham MSP

Nadia Whittome MP

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References

1. Animal Welfare Committee. Opinion on chick culling alternatives. https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/opinion-on-chick-culling-alternatives
2. Daniel Zeichner MP response in Parliament. https://questions-statements.parliament.uk/written-questions/detail/2025-05-30/55934/
3. Technical University of Munich. Pain Perception in Chicken Embryos: Nociceptive Processing from Day 13 of Development.Animals, 2023. https://www.mdpi.com/2076-2615/13/18/2839
4. The Ethical Implications of Animal Welfare. SpringerLink. https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s10806-015-9566-7
5. Five Freedoms for Animals. Animal Humane Society. https://www.animalhumanesociety.org/health/five-freedoms-animals
6. Banning the culling of male chicks:  Drawbacks of dual purpose chicken breeds as a solution. Mace Animal Welfare. https://www.maceanimalwelfare.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Dual-purpose-breeds-statement.pdf

• Sustainably feeding captive raptors and reptiles: Are there alternatives to culled male chicks? Jenny L. Mace, BSc, MSc AWSEL, FHEA. https://www.maceanimalwelfare.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Alternatives-to-current-raptor-reptile-feed-combined.pdf