Aroma Pets

Holistic Therapy For Pets

Star InactiveStar InactiveStar InactiveStar InactiveStar Inactive
 

   

Hens genetically modified to produce only female chicks could save mass culling

Israeli scientists have genetically modified hens so that they only lay eggs which produce females, in a breakthrough that could help end the annual culling of around seven billion male chicks around the world.

Male chicks are leaner and smaller than female chicks and not suitable for farming - Jamie McDonald/Getty Images Europe
Male chicks are leaner and smaller than female chicks and not suitable for farming - Jamie McDonald/Getty Images Europe© Jamie McDonald/Getty Images Europe

In a remarkable development which could have major positive environmental and economic benefits, embryologists worked for seven years to figure out how to edit the genes of egg-laying hens so that, when they are carrying male embryos, those do not progress and hatch.

Male chicks born from egg-laying hens are much smaller and leaner than those born from the hens which produce meat chickens.

As a result, they are destroyed en masse by being crushed or gassed because they are not suitable for meat production, cost a lot to raise, and do not lay eggs.

Animal rights activists have denounced the practice as barbaric, and it has been banned in several European countries - but not the UK, where some 29 million day-old male chicks are killed a year.

Restrictions across Europe

Germany’s prohibition on male chick culling came into effect this year, while French farmers have until the end of 2022 to comply with new restrictions. Italy could be next, with plans to introduce a law by late 2026.

“This is a world first and the only solution that is easy for industry players to implement,” Dr Yuval Cinnamon, a Volcani Centre embryologist, told AFP.

Only option available

The researchers say this is the only option to substantially curb mass male chick culling around the world.

The technology involves genetically modifying egg-laying hens so that, when carrying male embryos, those do not progress and hatch.

“After fertilisation the male embryos do not develop, and the female embryos develop normally without being genetically modified and hatch normally,” Dr Cinnamon explained.

“This will provide a real answer to what is probably the most serious animal welfare problem in the world today,” he added.

Beyond the animal rights benefits, the technology could offer poultry producers huge savings in terms of the space and energy required to operate incubators while reducing the significant culling costs.

“It costs a dollar to cull each male chick, so that’s seven billion in savings a year,” Dr Cinnamon said.

Commercial benefits

Huminn has forecast that commercial benefits from the technology could emerge within two years.

At a meeting in October, European Union agriculture ministers said they would consider a bloc-wide ban on culling male chicks from egg-laying hens, pending the results of an impact assessment.

Elsewhere, it was announced last month that chickens genetically edited to prevent bird flu are on the horizon in a breakthrough that could prevent egg and poultry shortages in supermarkets.

Scientists at the Roslin Institute at the University of Edinburgh and Imperial College say they are close to publishing new research on the creation of an avian flu-resistant chicken.

If successful, genetically edited flocks could be available in five to 10 years, say researchers.

In 2019, the team showed it was possible to use the genome-editing technique Crispr to delete a section of chicken DNA that the virus hijacks to replicate.

They found the virus was no longer able to grow inside cells with the genetic change.

Although the work was only carried out in chicken cells, the team has been working to duplicate the results in a live animal. 

Reference: The Telegraph: Story by Jamie Johnson 

Follow US

FaceBook     Twitter  

 

YouTube       RSS 

Login

Login

Who's On Line

We have 134 guests and no members online

Featured Video

 


Canine Feeding Schedules

Essential Oils

Zone - Text

We use cookies on our website. Some of them are essential for the operation of the site, while others help us to improve this site and the user experience (tracking cookies). You can decide for yourself whether you want to allow cookies or not. Please note that if you reject them, you may not be able to use all the functionalities of the site.

Ok
X

Right Click

No right click