> In recent years, local and international animal-rights groups, particularly in France, Germany, and the U.S., have been ramping up pressure on governments and

> In recent years, local and international animal-rights groups, particularly in France, Germany, and the U.S., have been ramping up pressure on governments and the egg industry to commit to ending the practice—particularly given technological innovations that allow producers to identify the sex of a developing chick before it hatches. The process is called “in-ovo-sexing,” and such technologies, versions of which are already deployed in some countries, can obviate the need for live chick culling. I am not certain why it is better to crush a chick within its egg than to gas it after it hatches. > that method, which involves creating a tiny hole in the eggshell with a laser … Germany is poised to become the first country to ban the industrial culling of male chicks > maybe for very large producers, the investment is worth it Ah, I see what this is really about: creating a market for someone's in-ovo-sexing technology, with a secondary effect of raising the bar for independent producers. One does have to admire the framing language, too: culling eggs is still culling. Germany isn't considering banning culling, it's just considering mandating that culling be conducted earlier.