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Ethical concerns remain with in-ovo gender determination
BY MATTHEW WEDZERAI I
n-ovo technology enables male chicks to be identified within the egg during the incubation period. Recent de- velopments show that this technology is expected to be ready for market on a large scale in most countries where
the technology allows this and where animal welfare is a pri- ority. Looking at the methods in a nutshell: the first is a meth- od which determines gender at day 4 of incubation with a spectroscopic analysis of extra-embryonic blood vessels; the second method analyses the estradiol content of the allantoic fluid on day 9 of incubation; while the third option sets out to analyse the gender through magnetic resonance – offering the ability to sex eggs from the first day of incubation. To thoroughly investigate consumer attitudes towards this new technology, a study was conducted in Germany with a representative sample of 482 respondents or consumers in which an anonymous online survey was developed and made available to the participants. Among a representative sample of participants, their geographical context, age and level of education were also taken into account. The research- ers believe their findings will be useful to stakeholders in poultry production who are considering the implementation of in-ovo gender determination as an ethically-acceptable substitute to male chick culling.
Stage of in-ovo screening The stage of embryo development at which the in-ovo screening is performed is as important to the technologists as it is to the consumers. The study revealed that in-ovo gender determination at each proposed day (d) of incubation (d1, d4, and d9) is preferred to chick culling. The screening on day 1 and day 4 was significantly preferred to screening at day 9. This shows that public acceptance of in-ovo screening largely depends on when during embryonic development the screening is performed. It can be assumed that the ethical value given to the chicken embryo increases with embryonic development. The participants indicated that the destruction of embryos should take place at an early stage
▶ POULTRY WORLD | No. 8, 2021 9
Recent studies show that in-ovo gender determination of incubated eggs can provide a beneficial substitute for the large-scale culling of male chicks in layer hen production. However, the technology raises ethical concerns relating to the sensitivity of the embryo, the use of screened-out eggs and the accuracy of in-ovo screening.
of development, before conscious pain perception is possi- ble. However, pain perception is a subject that is still under discussion. It was found that 41% of the respondents would approve of the technology if it could be carried out with cer- tainty before the onset of pain perception.
Pictures influence consumers Consumer preferences for in-ovo screening was first tested using plain text only and then with pictures of a chick or the incubated eggs at the corresponding stages of development. What was discovered is that the preference for early (day 1 and day 4) gender determination increased significantly
The stage of em- bryo develop- ment at which the in-ovo screening is per- formed is as im- portant to the technologists as it is to the con- sumers.
PHOTO: KOOS GROENEWOLD
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