[social_buttons]
A disturbing undercover video shot at a large egg hatchery in Iowa, shows unwanted male chicks being thrown into grinding machines while they are still alive. An employee of the non-profit animal protection group, Mercy for Animals (MFA), shot the Hatchery Horrors video while working at the Hy-Line International facility in Spencer during May and June.
According to the MFA website, nearly 150,000 male chicks are hatched and killed every day at the Spencer hatchery. The chicks are separated according to sex, and the males are thrown into grinding machines. Females are debeaked by a laser that slices off the ends of their beaks.
Because males do not lay eggs and grow too slowly for use as meat, they simply are not profitable. Since there is no method of producing only female hens, it is estimated that 200 million male chicks are killed in the egg industry each year.
The graphic video also shows a chick that fell through the sorting machine and left to die on the floor while another chick is shown lying on the floor after being scalded in a wash cycle.
Warning – disturbing video:
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/v/JJ--faib7to&hl=en&fs=1&color1=0x3a3a3a&color2=0x999999]
The group has asked America’s 50 largest grocery chains, including Hy-Vee, Safeway and Wal-Mart, to include warning labels on egg cartons informing consumers of this hidden and all-too-common practice. “Warning: Male chicks are ground-up alive by the egg industry.” Mitch Head, spokesman for United Egg Producers, said, “This is a group which espouses no egg consumption by anyone — so that is clearly their motive.” He called the warning label “almost a joke.”
In a statement issued by Hy-Line on August 31, the company stated its number one concern is for the “care and safety of our birds and our employees.” Although the company is investigating the incident, the statement also says the procedures shown in the video, the grinding of live male chicks, is “supported and approved by the veterinary and scientific community.” The statement goes on to say that the “instantaneous euthanasia by maceration” is supported by various organizations including the American Veterinary Association, Federation of Animal Science Societies, Agriculture Canada, World Organization for Animal Health and European Union.
This is awfully sick. It reminds me of Popeyes’ Tuesdays specials: 2 large wings for 99cents. This deals drives crowds of consumers to the Popeyes next to my house, and I wonder if those chicken-eaters understand how Popeyes manages to sell chicken at such a low price…
That is just disturbing and this is not coming from a vegetarian.
Although highly disturbing, the public NEEDS to be exposed to more and more footage exactly like this. The country’s meat and food industries need to be shaken by consumers’ demands for proper facilities and practices.
Anyone who is not affected by this and footage like it is either just plain ignorant or deeply disturbed – no excuses.
Hey, I grew up on a farm. It’s an industry like everything else. The goal is to make a profit. And the debeaking has a purpose – it keeps the chicks from pecking each other to death. There’s another long slow death for you. Only they are preventing it! I am more disturbed by the conditions HUMAN workers must suffer in other countries to produce goods cheaply. Really people, don’t you have a better place to focus your efforts?
Human or beast, any kind of cruelty diminishes us.
Probably the chicks would not peck each other if they weren’t packed into cages.
Deplorable working conditions for humans, crowded, ground-up poultry–it’s all about greed, isn’t it?
I think its horrible. 200 million innocent lifes taken before thier little eyes even adjust to the light. Per year.
Now if I bought puppies or kittens and murdered them like this in my country i’d go to jail. But because its profitable to do this to chickens its legal.
You kill it, you eat it.