What are the consequences of Germany's ban on chick killing? | DW Documentary

Roosters bring little profit on the poultry market. They lay no eggs and produce little meat. So, many German hatcheries sell millions of chicks abroad. Animal welfare usually falls by the wayside.
Because they don't lay eggs, around 45 million male chicks used to be killed in Germany every year. This practice has been banned since 2022. Since then, many German egg cartons began carrying the label: "No chick killing.” But, if they aren’t being killed, where are the roosters now?
Rearing the animals is so expensive in Germany that most hatcheries simply cannot afford to keep the male chicks. The so-called ‘brother roosters’ are often sent abroad to be reared, often to Poland. But what are conditions like there? Animal welfare activists have evidence of serious abuses.
The fattened cockerels are then often sold to Africa. In Ghana, meat from Europe is usually cheaper than domestic poultry. But local Ghanaian breeders suffer massively from these cheap imports from Europe.
The film follows the trail from the hatching of the chicks in a German hatchery to rearing in Poland and sale to Ghana. The research shows: The ban on chick killing in Germany shifts the problems abroad and animal welfare is usually ignored. The law seems well-intentioned but poorly thought out.
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[@user-fx3yf3vu8n]

So this law to is ensure that male chicks get to 'enjoy' their short life in horrible conditions, before being slaughtered anyway?

[@radigan196]

Terrible for the birds! Going vegan is the best way to protect them

[@robbanto98]

​@@radigan196are you the type who would save a zebra from a crocodile because "poor cute animal", meanwhile the crodile would die from hunger?

[@1ForTheShieldz]

​@robbanto98 you are the type to say you will starve to death because you don't eat meat unlike the crocodile.

[@traveler263]

@@radigan196 are you the type that keeps a pet that thrives on meat and forces it to be vegan to be able to make social media posts about it?

[@auszuriuk]

Greens at their stupidity: "Oh, poor chicken. Let's ruin our economy and other's economy so you could live a little longer."

[@thegrandlord2914]

Here in Indonesia, male chick still raised to produce meat, although it will producing meat with stronger taste. Usualy the meat will sold in rural area, since people in rural area like to eat meat with stronger taste. Sometimes the meat will sold to food factory, such as chicken sausage or nugget

[@sigiloXXX]

In Asia immediately after hatching they're put in a plastic bag to suffocate them, then they're prepared for deep frying. Seen on Best Ever Food Review Show with Sonny. Also another use: Balut (/bəˈluːt/ bə-LOOT, /ˈbɑːluːt/ BAH-loot; also spelled as balot) is a fertilized developing egg embryo that is boiled or steamed and eaten from the shell.

[@yamint]

Ayam jantan lebih enak yah rasanya 😀

[@thegrandlord2914]

@yamint iya. Lebih kuat rasanya, plus dagingnya lebih padat

[@jameschristophercirujano6650]

Layer chickens ain't built for meat. I don't think you know anything about the poultry industry.

[@thegrandlord2914]

@@jameschristophercirujano6650 chicken is chicken. Male have different growth compared to female. Here, rooster after they reach certain age will be let roam freely inside fenced area. Some farmer even will let their chicken roam freely around the farm area without being limited by fence, and the rooster will looking for their own food. Some farmer will also mix them with female local breed, which is ayam kampung breed, that technicaly the ancestor of every domesticated chicken since this is the earliest domesticated chicken. By mixing them with this chicken breed, the rooster will grow even bigger and with more meat. Average rooster that raised this way will usualy have up to 1,5x more weight than chicken raised in poultry industry

[@Automedon2]

Strange how it's cheaper to raise chickens in Poland and ship them all the way to Ghana than it is in Ghana itself.

[@agme8045]

Im guessing it’s due to the huge EU subsidies to farmers. Europe exports plenty of food to Africa, it’s not just chickens. Yet they oppose to a trade agreement with Mercosur..

[@vijayhardaha]

The world is so stupid. They don't even know that raising chicken requires 10x meal than a human meal 🤭 so stupidity is really amazing, we feed 10 people worth meal to a chicken and then it's served to 1 person and then we say we are poor and hungry. Clap for those stupid who think chicken, cow, pigs eat less than human and can raise with air only 🤣

[@bachvandals3259]

No, it's not cheaper. Most "imported Western meat" are old dairy cow meat and old hens, which are deemed unfit for human consumption. They are feeding you poisons pumped with hormones and antibiotics that make the meat dangerous.

[@gbone7581]

Its called dumping

[@ohajohaha]

​​@@gbone7581If we're talking about Poland specifically, then only cost dumping is recognised and fined. And that's about selling.

[@thewhisperingsylph8738]

That's Europeans' fault for having such snobby taste bud. In many other countries Rooster is still appreciated as food and is the cheaper alternative to hen's meat.

[@jodsvelis9819]

Did you watch the video? After 40 days, a fattened hen weighs 2.5 kg, while a rooster takes 150 days to reach the same weight. On the same amount of land, with the same resources like food and electricity, you can raise 3.75 hens for 150 days instead of one rooster. In Europe, where land and electricity are expensive, it is not cost-effective to raise roosters. However, in countries where land is cheap and there is no need for electricity during winter, raising roosters becomes viable, and people can afford to eat them because they are cheaper than hens. Like you said (Rooster is still appreciated as food and is the cheaper alternative to hen's meat.) In Europe, a rooster would cost as much as 3.75 hens (time+feed+space), making it too expensive for most people to buy and not to mention, a hen is tastier. It all comes down to cost. IF rooster was cheaper in europe, people would eat it. Since it isn't. They won't eat it since hen is tastier and cheaper.

[@Brian_in_Indiana]

​@@jodsvelis9819 I'm pretty sure that around the 3:40 mark the narrator misspoke about fattened hens reaching that weight in 40 days. Boiler breeds, such as the Cornish Cross, make it to that weight in 40 days (regardless of sex) while laying breeds take 150 days to reach that weight (regardless of sex). Still you're absolutely spot on about it not being profitable to raise laying breeds for meat.

[@ianover6838]

@@jodsvelis9819 Also since all the stuff with co2, which option is worse for the enviroment?

[@1ForTheShieldz]

​@jodsvelis9819 so you are calling women fat!

[@badbad-cat]

​@@1ForTheShieldz 😆

[@Not0a0City0Girl0]

The same type of thing happened with horse slaughter in north American. It was banned so instead of spending a few hours on a truck they now spend days as they need to be trucked to Mexico. These animal rights activists dont think the whole process through to the end. If an animal is to be raised for food then we need to treat the animal humanly from start to finish.

[@mserzysko]

I completely agree with you here. The most important thing is to stop being so crazy-protective about animals (like in 'we should not kill animals at all') and find solutions. Those animals are raised for their meat. Someone took money, time and work to grow them. I would love to know how the animal I eat was raised as a happy little bacon munching on some pasture. I would love to keep my own meat animals and make sure they are healthy and happy. But a lot of regulations that prevent me from doing that. So many folks were raised in the cities and have no idea how this thing works or looks like.

[@LucyKelly-jh5is]

Yes, they don't think things through.

[@amandaamanda5398]

@@mserzysko Even from this video, you learnt that people've already been looking for solutions since the law passed, such as sexing the egg before it hatched. So it makes sense that animal activists bring up their concerns as the first step, and then scientists and the whole industry follow up and look for solutions together.

[@p5eudo883]

@@LucyKelly-jh5is It's not that they don't think things through. It's that companies immediately look to find any loophole they can after regulations are put in place. The companies choosing to do the wrong thing is not the fault of those who try to prevent cruelty. It's the fault of greedy people who put profit over decency.

[@tohopes]

"activists don't think" there ya go.

[@Faustobellissimo]

I don't understand. Here in Italy, young male chickens are castrated to make them "capons" and they're highly appreciated. Just like with every young male of any other animal species raised for meat...

[@KyrilPG]

Yeah, but that's apparently not the case for the specific species that gives the most productive laying hens. Plus, castration isn't exactly ethical either.

[@Faustobellissimo]

@@KyrilPG Nah, I think it's just a marketing problem. Capons cost more because the castration procedure is costly. If Germans don't know this type of meat, they will need to be educated. And... is it ethical to castrate your cat or your dog?

[@KyrilPG]

@@Faustobellissimo Corrected a major type, it's in all caps : The "chapons" here in France are NOT from the same subspecies as the laying hens, they use proper chickens like yellow chicken, etc. Cats and dogs get anesthesia for this, but the chicks do not. In the video, they said that the chicks are "anesthetized" before being shredded, but they don't in many countries where the chicks are directly sent to the shredder alive and kicking. I've put "anesthetized" in quotes because it's probably CO2 pseudo euthanasia, not anesthesia. So it can't be used for chapons / capons.

[@catalina5382]

Not these ones, these are egg chicken, these are killed because they are useless and not good for meat. They don't grow fast enough for the meat industry

[@nolongerinbetween3913]

@@KyrilPG So your ethics are based on anesthesia... :)))

[@tessjuel]

Respeggt, a Dutch company, has developed a method for determining a chicken embryo's gender long before the egg hatches. So far only three hatcheries, two in Germany and one in Norway, have adopted the technology but once it's become more common the problem with male chicken shredding should be greatly reduced.

[@Ash-fd8ww]

A few years ago there was a episode of BestEverFoodReviewShow where Sonny visited Africa (perhaps Ghana) and the locals were even saying how imported meats were cheaper and farmers had a very hard time competing; but at the time said it was mostly from France. I'm sure its probably a coincidence, but I just thought it was interesting that a food review show shed light on the issue before this deep-dive was released.

[@evelynwoolston7]

Chicks are not anaesthetised & shredded in the UK; they are just shredded.

[@magesalmanac6424]

Wtf 😬

[@papuzka0]

Some are frozen whole and sold as animal food.

[@sarielizard1]

Terrible

[@chrisgriffin8472]

At least someone shows some common sense.

[@martin96991]

Evil 😈

[@leyjit3561]

The road to hell is paved by well-meaning idiots.

[@doggodoggo3000]

you could apply that to the farmers who just insist they are trying to feed people. But in reality they are just contributing to this horrific system and pollution and zoonotic diseases and terrible low paying jobs.

[@skeletorrocks2452]

It's all just hypocritical virtue signaling. And you're talking about the same country that's trying to dismantle its nuclear industry while saying they want to lower the carbon footprint. While simultaneously and hypocritically for years importing Russian oil and gas. You got to wonder which European country wants to basically be California 2.0.

[@doggodoggo3000]

@@skeletorrocks2452 uggh. right wingers are all so ignorant and full of contradictions i swear.

[@skeletorrocks2452]

@@doggodoggo3000 I noticed you didn't bother to prove me wrong. So good job making my point for Me.

[@doggodoggo3000]

@@skeletorrocks2452 i mean where to start? you talk like america is a monolith and we know thats not true. its just childish right wing gishgalloping. like bro europe ALREADY HAS TRAINS. Califoria and the USA in general doesnt really have a passenger rail system. AND CALIFINIA IS STILL IN AMERICA AND HAS RIGHT WINGERS AND STUFF. your califoria quip is so nonsensical and tired af. all rightwinger repeat this stupid califoria bashing and its just ignorant of reality. California is one of the largest economies on earth. Its more resource rich and larger than most European countries. If anything, they would want to be more like europe with walkable infrastructure and trains and stuff.

[@Robert-cu9bm]

Germany, sending it's unwanted in mass to Poland. Keep to your roots.😂

[@darkbozo11]

Sending it's animals and people to their promised land

[@mahnamahna3252]

And harming Ghana

[@Ricardorhino88]

​@mahnamahna3252 all the roosters going to Africa cause the people are poor and have no other choice so it's kinda evil if you think about it

[@onepup-pr3yl]

@@Ricardorhino88 It's simple economics, not all the people of Ghana would be able to eat Ghanaian-produced chicken because it costs twice as much as imported meat. Also even at twice the price of imported meat, the local producer is barely able to remain viable to stay in business. The Ghanaian producer would have to increase their return to remain viable, this would mean that the consumer pays more, consumes less, or turns to other sources of protein that they can afford.

[@Ricardorhino88]

@onepup-pr3yl yep and its like that ALL over the world .even in the United States the poor have to eat all the chemical filled food

[@sillyheadphone]

In China, they sell live young male roosters for soup/bone broth purposes. You could still make a small profit to hype up the homemade bone broth.

[@martinithechobit]

westerners with their first world can't cook on their own.

[@ifrooscouldfly]

You have to feed the animals, and clean their poop. They not machines

[@GAMEOVER-yy6zj]

In china everything that moves other than veggies considered as food.

[@sumralltt]

Sure - They told us soy is good for you - I'm sure people would believe the hype!

[@noproblematallmate]

​@@GAMEOVER-yy6zjin China there are more cooking methods than the western grilling, panfrying and deepfrying.

[@pedrolopes3542]

Everyone is focused on "animal welfare", but nobody is talking about the negative economic impacts of Subsidising companies that export food. Why do German taxpayers have to subsidise chickens that are going to be sold outside of Germany, Ghana or Poland or whatever?

[@ursu16codrutza]

they should just find other businesses that do not abuse animals. i am happy about the negative impact the companies have when they exploit animals.

[@martin96991]

Humanity to its Lowest.

[@GamesAccount-gg9ik]

In exchange from that food those country give cheap natural resources and cheap labor 😂

[@AtomicDog-v2d]

Why does the US fund drag shows in other countries…because the government doesn’t care what you think..

[@lycanthrope19]

Subsidies go to the farmers who raise the chickens- it keeps farmers and farm laborers in Germany employed. The chickens going abroad are sales for German farmers, so profit they bring home, on a product local consumers do not want to buy. The negative economic consequences of subsidies are borne by the local African farmers who cannot compete with cheaper imports

[@someguy2135]

Most people don't really care about the cruelty needed for their food. They just want something on the package that tells them it isn't cruel.

[@ReighnDrac]

So many efforts made to make eggs 'less cruel' so people can feel better about it when they can just choose to not eat eggs. It's insanely sad.

[@TheKingWhoWins]

Being a vegetarian is a lot more reasonable than being a vegan

[@someguy2135]

@@TheKingWhoWins in what way is vegetarianism more reasonable than veganism? If the motivation to become vegetarian is to minimize animal suffering then becoming vegan is more reasonable

[@Swevill]

I do think most people care, but it’s not their top priority, to most it would be affordability, accessibility, taste, THEN cruelty-free

[@someguy2135]

@@Swevill the cruelty inherent to animal agriculture is only one reason to boycott animal products. My channel has links to sources with details and evidence

[@maxchonxston]

6:50 lol the germans do their slaughtering in poland….

[@skzion2]

Old habits die hard.

[@Ironclad17]

Oh good, I'm not the only one going to hell.

[@beddythecorgi4269]

"The slaughtering happens almost exclusively in Poland.... " Yikes!

[@cathygrandstaff1957]

Yes but do they ship the chicks there by train?

[@cyan_oxy6734]

Doesn't have that meaning in German though.

[@arcanerune9134]

We use male chicks as feeders for animals. Reptiles, dogs, cats, and some anphibians love them. Even some fish get them as feeders as well. They are not going to waste, this law is stupid. We have bigger issues that need more attention.

[@DurgaUsagi]

Iwas thinking that,like WHAT ABOUT THE PET FOOD INDUSTRY?!?!?😑

[@billwhoever2830]

​@@DurgaUsagi they don't produce enough meat in time, you wast money to feed them and they produce very little for what they eat. The chicks were obviously made into pet food after they were killed, they didn't go to waste, they just got killed as soon as they were born.

[@SelfProclaimedEmperor]

If you can't have compassion toward animals, you won't have compassion toward other humans.

[@Adrian-sw4cx]

Yeah, who cares about animal cruelty and an industry that contributes to global warming, deforestation, water use and contamination, zoonotic diseases, antibiotic resistant bacteria, etc.

[@johnbonwell8735]

Everyone has the wrong idea here; the roosters should be used to consume insects in “truck gardens”. Chickens eat a lot of insects in the course of a day. Less insects means less pesticides used; less pesticides means more money in the pockets of the farmers.

[@ponyridingirl]

👍

[@BarafuAlbino]

It only works in theory. Birds do not provide as full protection as chemicals. It means the produce of those gardens will have some insect damage. Which means people will avoid buying it, compared to the produce of the farms that use chemicals. Here, apples that are clean from any damage sell for 120 rub/kg, while those with superficial insect damage - 45 rub/kg.

[@onepup-pr3yl]

And how many '' truck gardens'' and insects would it take to raise the 28 thousand rooster chicks that one rearing shed can accommodate, not to mention that day-old chicks need to be carefully raised and nurtured before they are capable of surviving.

[@joela6895]

You forget males are territorial and they would only kill each other. I tried to raise a bunch of roosters and they always fought

[@jskratnyarlathotep8411]

Chickens are not nice to the plants even if they don't eat it

[@GreenAppelPie]

What did everyone expect?

[@BotDetector-44]

People thinks that chicken nuggets grow on trees, what did you expect?

[@TheBooban]

I’m not sure. I’m 5 mins in and realize this important rights issue is not worth my time. What is the outcome of the male chicks? Is it bad? Then fix it. Hire that Kennedy guy Trump got. He can do it.

[@TheBooban]

@@AL-lh2ht yeah I don’t think he was anti vax though. Just don’t force people.

[@sigiloXXX]

@@TheBooban Don't kid yourself. We don't need him.

[@someguy2135]

Kennedy is not exactly the man for the job of reducing cruelty in animal agriculture. Remember he's the guy who thinks it's funny to pose with a dead bear cub and a dead goat that looks like a dog that he was eating

[@that.schamp]

When city folk write Agricultural policy... And can't understand why small farmers can't stay in business and your food is increasingly produced by multinational conglomerates.

[@TeemoTemosson]

Animal torture is wrong.

[@yucol5661]

These are not small farmers

[@Centrioless]

@@that.schamp none of this has anything to do with small farmers. Small farmers dont waste their livestocks

[@mback3713]

People are killing and eating eggs and chickens every day, and people are upset that male chicks are being culled... in ways that are as quick and efficient as possible? This whole story is absolutely ludicrous.

[@MissaDelegato]

facts👆

[@attomicchicken]

What facts? Eggs that are laid aren't fertilised. Unless you mean something like balut.

[@larryspiller6633]

Granny did the same with her roosters. Not because the meat wasn't good but because raising a flock of roosters had more problems than they were worth on the table.

[@nathanielwojcik7435]

Germany criticizing Poland for exploiting their flawed laws to create a lucrative opportunity-importing male chicks, raising them, and shipping them to Africa at a low price-is being labeled as inhumane? Something about this story doesn’t add up and under multiple facets.

[@GetToTheFarm]

its ridiculous that any chicks are wasted. even on the farm we still raise the roos up to 3-4 months and then just mix the ground chickenmeat into our beef. Everytime i see one of these they always get the facts just a little wrong.... in meat breed broilers males are preferred but not selected for- they are slightly larger that the meat breed hens and reach weight sooner than hens do. In egg layers (which most of the roo culling referrs to) neither has much meat on their carcass. Also any chicken raised for meat production can be called a broiler, with the weight of a meat breed hen compared to a egg layer roo- you can get the chart shown at 3:47. I don't think the producers did it on purpose, just the terms can be confusing.

[@michelehemlokhexwhite4310]

Or... the industry either needs to move to a heritage dual meat/egg bird, or use gene splicing to create a sexually dimorphic breed that's visible in the egg within the first week. Edit: they mention this around the 23min mark. Thanks for the chart timestamp, too.

[@Centrioless]

Rooster meat is also leaner which makes them better for slow and low cooking process like braising. I really dont understand why minimizing food waste is such a huge controversy for a lot of ppl

[@hottractor1999]

We did similar when we raised chickens. None of the chickens were wasted.

[@PlayerTenji95]

@@CentriolessI’m saying!

[@ESSBrew]

3:40 they say a fattened hen, but that is misleading, even the image says the truth, its a BROILER Chicken, they are breed for meat and that includes the roosters, not just hens, and in fact there are NO HENS, if the chicken is only 45 days old it is a pullet, not a "fattened hen"

[@toomanymarys7355]

Yes, the documentary maker made a mistake.

[@capybareno23]

Animal rights groups are so short-sighted, preferring emotional slogans over practical solutions

[@col.cottonhill6655]

The left in a nutshell

[@DJBnw]

​@col.cottonhill6655 no , they are cultists just like MAGA

[@blitzblotch]

@@col.cottonhill6655 Both the left and the riight can be like that. Just to different causes

[@j.r.8176]

Caring more about the comfort of animals than humans is so bizarre especially since these aren't even wild animals.. They're domesticated! They're more than happy and willing to be used in food production! What are these animal rights activists trying to prevent anyways?! A chicken uprising where they overthrow the system? These are chickens, NOT HUMAN SLAVES!

[@cactusshadow9840]

right? animal agriculture IS NOT sustainable! farmers know this. that is among the comorbidities that cause agricultural workers to have such high self termination rates! African farmers are the real victims in this story. lets crowd fund in ovo sexing hatchery in Africa as they have in Germany! soon African poultry farms will be competitive with imported product!

[@pierrex3226]

The level of stupidity of this law is incredible.

[@GKP999]

Why?

[@vijayhardaha]

@@pierrex3226 Humans protesting against murder and want to continue the murder. Just wow moment.

[@Knightmare919]

This is why I hate most politicians there are so unqualified they do not know what they are doing they are so out of touch of reality.

[@kennyboifoods2171]

​@@GKP999 simple, eugenics is common in agriculture so that the farms focus only on the animals that are profitable. If farms are forced to raised livestock that no one wants they will go bankrupt.

[@mathijsd3764]

The government is funding scientific research to develop new techniques for improving the sector. I would argue that the law is effectieve. Sure the market lacks behind, but that is how it has always been. Until producers are obliged to invest in improved practices, most of them do not have the time, willingness, money, or knowledge to do so.

[@thewildlifemaster5300]

That is such a stupid law 🤦🏾‍♂️ this is why I dislike these animal welfare organizations 💀 they make things complicated and bad for the animals

[@michelehemlokhexwhite4310]

They try to help, but often misunderstand the wider implications.

[@doggodoggo3000]

in what way did this make it worse for the animals?

[@HeatherWP]

It’s the politicians that are making the horrible laws to try and appease the animal welfare organizations. It’s not appeasing them, it’s just making things sound good to the average consumer who doesn’t have a clue about what they’re buying and they want to feel good about themselves.

[@ESSBrew]

What is "Brother Rooster"? Ive never heard anyone say that, sounds like a fairy tale.

[@michelehemlokhexwhite4310]

The unwanted brothers of the wanted hens for egg production.

[@michelehemlokhexwhite4310]

That said, yes, sounds like a P.R. stunt :/

[@glenncordova4027]

Silly language brought to us by animal rights activists.

[@CSWRB]

Language designed to make you sympathetic to the vegan propaganda.

[@uuuultra]

it's to humanize the chickens 😂

[@sk-pm8js]

They should try raising BV380 chicken. Invented in india, 95% of the chicks are hens. Cocks are rare

[@RajRaj-lc8qw]

bv380 invented in which state of India?

[@TheSwiftCreek2]

Solutions on an individual basis. A) Don't eat chickens or eggs. B) Raise your own. C) Pay way more for someone local to raise them for you. D) Pay way more for a commercial process with some level of accountability to raise them "ethically" for you. It won't be as "ethical" as yourself or a local farm, but... E) Eat your commercially grown chickens and eggs at the best price possible and lobby your government to stop being nonsensical.

[@radigan196]

A) don't eat chickens or eggs Because we don't have to when there are plant-based foods

[@randomforest_dev]

Who said male chicken meat is not good? picky eaters.

[@johnsingleton7548]

You have never raised your own meat. You know nothing why have an opinion?

[@tanyachou4474]

No it has less fat, in Hong Kong we eat male and female chicken depends if we want to make soup or eat pure meat. If we want pure meat we get a rooster instead

[@trashcatlinol]

I remember my mom telling stories about how they had roosters to protect the hwbs from coyotes in the area. If the roosters attacked people, they were destined for the next meal. Not once did any of them mention that the meat tasted any different. They were meant for food at yhe end of their life anyway. If they had too many males, they raised them to meat weight and butchered them. You couldn't afford to be picky or you didn't eat. Same with fermented foods. If you didn't like them you didn't eat half the year.

[@MADARAUCHIHA-hk7ru]

​@@johnsingleton7548 I suppose you are one of the affected farmers in Germany? Maybe use your voice to make people understand it's also good meat? Like the commenter said?

[@toomanymarys7355]

That is an error in the documentary. There isn't a market for layer roosters. They are too expensive to raise and take too much feed to produce inferior meat. There is of course a market for meat breeds of roosters.

[@TrashbinCat]

They should send all the male chickens to live with Julia Klockner

[@sachins117]

😂😂😂

[@michelehemlokhexwhite4310]

Who is that? Lol

[@leobuana7430]

I think she confused cock with "cock"

[@TrashbinCat]

@@michelehemlokhexwhite4310 The agricultural minister who implemented the ban, according to the video

[@michelehemlokhexwhite4310]

@TrashbinCat aha. Thanks. 😊 I missed that!

[@luisaraujo4708]

Ten minutes into the video and, while I’m no investigative journalist, the answer was obvious, Germany passed a law that’s nonsensical, so the animals are simply shipped to other countries for processing, and the added costs are passed onto consumers.

[@Joshua-Carr]

Crazy idea here, how about the politician stops their nonsense meddling and leave farming to the farmers. All the politicians do is ruin stuff.

[@kennethkho7165]

I mean, it is a democracy, and it is kinda the job of the politicians to guess what voters want.

[@redneckcomputergeek]

Entire video could have been 10 minutes shorted. With out watching some one walk around a fack office over and over.

[@boxsterman77]

fake

[@LowOfSolipsism]

EU chokes itself with regulatory madness

[@lacdirk]

This isn't an EU regulation.

[@SumTroll914]

​@@lacdirknot yet...

[@lacdirk]

@@SumTroll914 It will only be a European regulation if a qualified majority of Europeans and European states agree to it. You know, democracy moderated by sovereignty.

[@glasslinger]

Examining various situations in Germany I have concluded that Germany has a severe shortage of psychiatrists!

[@smallbeginning2]

Too many actually. They're embroiled in all this.

[@rora9553]

20:30 The guys basically said, “I respect and cherish life, but understand the necessity of the process as it is.” I respect that. A good man just doing what he can with what he has, and respecting the life he cares for.

[@johngillatt2740]

I tried growing chickens. My first batch consisted of "brother rosters" they ate copious amounts of food and never put on weight! I never did another batch! There was no profit! The imported chicken meat doesn't look like the "brother rosters" that chicken meat looks like meat from specialised broiler breeds

[@iancowan3527]

Do what? Unacceptable to cull as chicks, but not after raising them entirely in captivity, feeding them an unnatural diet, using them to produce their unborn as a food resource, to then use them for a food... What "freedom" or "better way of life" / "what drugs is that woman taking to believe she's done something other than harm an industry that's relyed on?" ~ seriously ~ that's like rescuing animals that are then put down!!!

[@ChibiKeruchan]

Why is this a problem? I thought they were raise a bit to turn it into a dog food.

[@kathycarraher5014]

Baby chicks look like baby birds they are only fluff and very ting bones there is nothing to eat. figure out how much dog food is ground up feathers.

[@therealmewmew]

That would make horrible dog food. Those roosters are all bones and feathers not just at birth but for months, even up to a year. Maybe 20% of their weight is actual meat once they mature. And roosters fight! This is why no one in their right mind keeps and grows a herd of roosters who all want to murder each other. They eat a ton of food, create a ton of waste, are next to impossible to house on mass humanely, and they produce almost nothing in return.

[@ThePmloc]

We agree that battery raised chickens do not have an ideal life. Now we are insisting that the male chicken must indure that too, and the end is the same, but the brother chick is more aware of its fate. I won't bother to go into the downside of transport to and effect on Ghana.

[@radigan196]

It's terrible for the birds! The best solution is to ditch eggs and eat plant-based foods!

[@triadwarfare]

​@@radigan196that's a terrible option too.

[@dermotlynch2223]

This story is incomplete - there needs to be more done on the economics involved. Frankly what's told doesn't make sense. If it's significantly more expensive to raise roosters for meat, then how can that more expensively raised meat in Europe, be then sent all the way to Ghana and sold more cheaply than chicken meat raised locally, and presumably with much less cost?

[@dylanmartin1761]

They don't get in to the difference in breeds. The roosters that are culled at birth are from birds with genetics to lay eggs. These "laying" birds aren't bread to put on weight so it takes an extended period to put on weight. Male and Female birds from genetic lines designed for meat production don't have this issue. Those roosters can be raised along side the hens without issue.

[@gorilladisco9108]

Economic of scale, modern technology, and of course, government subsidies.

[@gabriellakadar]

At the open air market in Ghana, the chicken thighs for sale are not from the roosters of egglaying breeds. They are really large. When the women were interviewed about the price of chicken meat and how the cheaper import provides more food for the family, then that's most definitely not referring to the scrawny roosters that grow from the egg layer breeds. Makes me wonder about the research done for this presentation.

[@dermotlynch2223]

@@gabriellakadar That documentary raises more questions than it answers.

[@gabriellakadar]

@@dermotlynch2223 True. Also, what's the big difference of killing the rooster before or after it hatches? Weird.

[@Sea-cucumber1151]

The local chicken farmer has the healthier looking chickens, sadly. The stuff on the streets is probably not as healthy and the sellers tell people the imported chicken is fatter, but hers look so much healthier.

[@edvoon]

Those are real free-range chickens with plenty of space. In Cantonese restaurants they are a delicacy (走地鸡） with better texture meat and taste, and usually gets charged a premium. Of course unfortunately in Ghana there are probably not enough of richer people who would pay more for better quality meat - poorer people will always go for bang for their buck.

[@me_souljah]

Another cost to production in Ghanaian poultry is the cost of feed, as a failed agricultural country, we can't even produce chicken feed affordable enough to sustain egg production and meat locally, that adds up massively to the price of poultry products. A fact the farmer didn't mention

[@Honorablepitbull]

So stupid! Use the male product for pet foods and raw feeding for dogs and cats.

[@mahnamahna3252]

Have you raised cocks? Do you have any idea of what happens with a flock of predominantly males?

[@iscotwori6905]

It's expensive

[@someguy2135]

You make a good point that maximum profit is always the bottom line. The solution is to end animal agriculture in favor of a plant-based food system. Each of us can reduce the demand for animal products by switching to a plant-based diet. As far as saving money on an individual level, you could save about a third of your food budget by switching to a whole food plant-based diet.

[@redhammer5783]

@@someguy2135 gross, ill stick with meat

[@bhaskarchatterjee5249]

@@someguy2135remember that it’s a choice, stop forcing it on others

[@ErnieSesameStreet]

Chicken provide meat or eggs are treated crudely, whether the eggs are female or male.

[@freeonlinecourse5523]

@@ErnieSesameStreet tbh they probably ain't aware of the cruelty. I'll agree if its pigs, but chickens doesn't aware of the cruelty, they're only get stressed but not aware.

[@14104]

​@@freeonlinecourse5523If they feel stressed then they are aware of cruelty, sadly.

[@freeonlinecourse5523]

@@14104 not really. Just experiencing something doesn't mean you are aware of the cause. Even human needs to work on themself, to reveal the cause of their inner pain. The only reason they feel stressed is because of the slaughtered chicken's voice before when slaughtered.

[@agaimless3724]

​@@freeonlinecourse5523chickens are aware of cruelty they're smarter than you think

[@uuuultra]

they're food

[@mariamountain6718]

Reminds me where, in the Netherlands, the 'Party for Animals' made it so that hunters aren't allowed to shoot as many deer as previously, with the result, and I spoke with a local hunter, the local deer population is experiencing more illnesses. The hunter expressed his sadness about this, since he does care about the animals and has been taking care of them for years.

[@atlasbees]

I see it even just in the US, the states that are stricter on it have so much more roadkill and nuisance deer

[@Oldfarmlady]

The biggest problem the vast majority of people these days don't raise or grow their own food. As long as our food systems are treated as factories for grocery stores there will be abuse.

[@lho10101]

There was no discussion about what this did to the price of eggs.

[@ClockSeeker]

Poultry prices will rise. It is a food industry not free range farm raised. Soon the local poultry will be more expensive than the import one.

[@someguy2135]

I could cite a study that showed that switching to a purely plant-based diet could save about a third of your food budget here in developed countries. The most expensive products in the store are animal products and the cheapest ones are beans rice pasta Etc

[@BLAQFiniks]

​@@someguy2135 does your study incorporates that mass produced veggies are LESS nutrient dense than the ones we had even 50 years ago?

[@someguy2135]

@@BLAQFiniks nutrient density is not a problem in developed countries like the United States. Those on a plant-based diet can simply consume more food to absorb the nutrients we need. Food can be concentrated buy cooking and blending. In developed countries like the United States the biggest problem is overconsumption of the wrong foods which leads to obesity and chronic diseases like cardiovascular disease. Those on a well-planned plant-based diet are significantly less likely to develop those conditions and other of the most common chronic diseases of developed countries

[@countrykids1444]

​I could cite you a study that shows that giving puberty blockers to kids is a good idea. Humans eat meat. Get over it. I don't care for your plant based diet. ​@@someguy2135

[@raimonestanol8234]

​@@someguy2135 I could cite a million studies about how going vegan is unrealistic for many who want to get enough good quality protein and amino acids. The purpose of this law is to take down the German economy and make it depend on imports, as is happening in many things in the German economy...

[@Davemicpal]

Same goes with ban on mining. EU just source them where it is legal.

[@obryan240]

I used to work for a warehouse in Seattle that exported chicken meat stamped with Not For Human Consumption in red letters on it. Not sure where any of those containers i loaded went. We imported shoes with no labels that i never saw in stores too.

[@jennycurtis4447]

4:04 “There’s life in here! Clearly, you can see all the movements”. Similar to human babies at just a few weeks old.

[@CHADnFREUD]

So, once again, somewhere in the world a law was passed without provisions to ensure its efficacy... shocking.

[@Somerled_1]

very eye opening! It's interesting how someone living in a nice country in Germany can say "Don't kill the cute little chickens," and that leads to Farmers in Ghana losing a livelihood because of it. It is almost like the German lady politician has a hand in importing chicken business to Africa.

[@wickedbird1538]

😮😮When I (70) was young, I toured a hatchery in the US. We had zero use for males. Day old roosters were killed and sold to animal food producers.

[@RR-iq8ze]

What can they do with such small chicks or whatever theybare called.

[@grantschiff7544]

Today, everyone has a bleeding heart for every little thing. Farmers have it hard enough without this kind of clueless interference.

[@lisa2stewart]

Chicken meal

[@ritishify]

Australia protecting their youth by banning social media and Germany out here protecting chicken nuggets.

[@sungkim742]

People don't know about this heinous crime. Get the word out.

[@inuendo6365]

Lean gamey rooster meat can be used for broth, specialty foods, pet feed, fish feed and low cost meat filler. The problem is that companies want to sell MASSIVE numbers of birds to singular buyers all at once rather than selling to a diverse portfolio of smaller buyers at different times. This is the problem when governments subsidize giant overgrown industries. Any changes, even small ones, will be met with mountains of complaints because the industries want everything to stay at the same GIGANTIC scale.

[@WhiteMouse77]

...why they don't process roosters into pet/ZOO/salmon fodder directly after hatching?🤔

[@pynn1000]

The new German law made this illegal.

[@NyanyiC]

@@WhiteMouse77 if they can't be killed as soon as they hatch? when then is it permissible according to this law?

[@SuperTheTheresa]

obviously, you need to wait at least two days. i mean, no, i does not make any sense.

[@WhiteMouse77]

@@pynn1000 Germans really got into enjoying to sabotage their economy insideout for nothing more than superficial alibism.... 😀

[@WhiteMouse77]

@@NyanyiC ...not when....only where...anywhere around EU...

[@TheJensss]

Whats the problem? Instead of banning a good way of removing chicken waste they should ban harmful substances and addons in the food the chickens receive. If done properly the products should also be salmonella free like in Norway

[@poiuttyrfghj8474]

“Why won’t the farmer talk to journalists?” Idk maybe because you always publish something that causes some sort of public outcry or new law that makes it impossible for them to do business..

[@trog7986]

"If everything they are doing is legal, what are they hiding?" 🙄 Farmers provide our food, Germans must not like having food

[@imoneixusa9742]

That's a stupid law. It's no wonder that industry is fleeing from Germany and many other Western European countries

[@roamaroundgisg7362]

This is baffling. This is Not an issue in South East Asia to be exact. Whether male or female, they are chickens.

[@nyabinghi870]

Am from Ghana and I don't eat imported chicken, meat or fish....

[@scisher3294]

Wonderful job on reporting. Thank you for all your work and efforts ❤

[@DWDocumentary]

Thanks a lot for watching and for your positive feedback.

[@ColburnClark]

Throughout the EU, roughly one fifth of hens are sexed using in-ovo sexing technologies already. That means there are no roosters being sent to factory farms as a result. Unlike the narrative that in ovo sexing is still under development suggested by this article, Lohmann Deutschland has already installed viable in ovo sexing technologies in a German hatchery in Ankum.

[@fionaedmonds389]

Excellent investigation

[@julianajaeger]

This law is a great example of a solution in search of a problem. Every time government reaches further into industry to legislate a "moral issue" it makes a mess.

[@gabi.a]

3:08 anestitized and killed? Most videos I've seen show the cicks being crushed alive, usually in a machine way too open to actually kill them... I tought the law was banning technices that leave the poor thing suffering...

[@loksterization]

How is killing a small chick at birth worse than killing an adult for meat? I don't understand this hypocrisy.

[@marcrigor6423]

I guess the idea is they get a chance to "live."

[@annehaverhals1750]

@@marcrigor6423 A meat chicken lives for 10 weeks, and that is it.

[@marcrigor6423]

@@loksterization Maybe they could sell crates of them for insect control.

[@5400bowen]

It's the image. Babies.

[@ilovemyservicedog8862]

There’s a whole Nother video about how the chickens end up in Africa. It’s because any chicks that are done laying hands. They’re called spent birds there than slaughtered separately from other ones frozen and sent to Africa at a very discounted price. The Africans have apparently gotten used to them and pretty much that’s the only chicken that they know from from the report, I watched they were actually surprised that Europeans and Americans do not eat the birds because they’re way tougher than regular chicken. So my guess is that that’s also why the male chicks go to Africa is because they’re frozen and sold out a cheaper price and in Africa they’re used to getting smaller birds like that.. sorry, I don’t have the video but if you look up this video, I believe it part of it was about how excess clothing ends up in Africa so like donated clothing and stuff that was sent to Africa that was part of the video and the rest of it talked about these chickens so look up like donate a clothing to Goodwill that is actually sold to Africa you’ll find it

[@andiamador7156]

Older Texas woman here from rural roots. I don't know what they do nowadays here with the roosters that hatch in egg farms, but when I was little, they used to throw all the live baby roosters in a dumpster. My granny had my dad go and get a couple dozen live ones in good shape from the dumpster and she would raise them up in a box with a light at first, then move them to an outdoor coop for growing them up. They would get tough fast, and the older, the tougher, but the flavor of the boiled chicken dishes was very good. Chicken and dumplings or chicken noodle soup were staples in family menus back then. I recall her chicken and drop dumplings and learning how to prepare roosters for the pot from my visits with my grandparents. It isn't so wasteful. It's how home owners dealt with excess roosters in a normal way. I'm sure they make pet food out of the culled chicks wherever they cull them nowadays. It is ethically better to cull immediately in a humane manner, and unwasteful manner, and of course an economically sound manner) than to raise them in sad conditions, frankly. (The thinking behind that is why I will not eat veal. Too sad.) My grandpa would get day old calves from the local dairy and put them on their milk cow with her own calf to raise up, and they still got lots of milk for everything, including making butter and cottage cheese and such. They had a jersey. They should consider selling day old chicks very cheaply to some rural, home growers locally for personal home-produced meat, and/or some company needs to get into making chicken soups from some roosters raised up for it. Reduced fat chicken broth, bone broth, and pet food for cats and dogs with the meat and bone bits can also come from it. But raise them in good conditions and transport them in good conditions.

[@Cloud_Seeker]

There is no way there is enough rural home growers to buy all chicks. Imagine if your community had to buy 100 million chicks every single year. You can't afford it even if you got them for free. The issue here is that these problems comes from people who live in big cities and never tried to understand where their food comes from. They might even think the food just appear in the stores by magic. Yet they are going to tell people what they can and can't do when creating it. They will never touch a rooster. They will reject it because it isn't as good meat. They will not make broth, soup or pet food. They don't know how to cook food. They don't have pets. If they do have pets they don't know how to make pet food. And they have no idea how to make broth. They buy their food already prepared and don't think more about it.

[@Wicked6975]

California and Germany have a lot in common. So, how do you feed an ever increasing world population without large scale farming? Does EU law allow private sale of meat, milk, etc., from local farms or is that throttled?

[@madelynbingham4128]

You feed them plant-based foods, which requires a tiny fraction of the water and land used to grow animals for food

[@grantschiff7544]

​@madelynbingham4128 I evolved to have meat in my diet. I tried tofu and soy, but my stomach gets upset, and I get the trots.

[@gtdetan]

Imagine fighting this hard for CHICKENS but human babies, meh, they are just a clump of cells.

[@suep9445]

And they are, until that clump of cells grows into a fetus and can be viable outside of the womb. Everything starts as a clump of cells.

[@clDTutube]

When we care for others, we care for ourselves.

[@katieandkevinsears7724]

​@@suep9445If you go with that logic, you still are a clump of cells until you die. Every multicellular organism is.

[@suep9445]

@katieandkevinsears7724 except that I've been able to survive for decades once I was born. Take a clump of cells out of the womb and it dies. Big difference.

[@gtdetan]

@@suep9445 Google the definition of fetus. Why do chickens have more value than actual human beings?

[@martinblake2278]

What it means? Additional expenses for the farmer. Wasted money on a product who can't produce eggs and whose meat are tough. This is coming from a chicken farmer.

[@boredphysicist]

Its unacceptable to kill animals immediately... but not after a few weeks? So stupid, Im not advocating for a ban on killing animals, just you either ban killing animals of any age or you dont...

[@FatTigerOnATree]

Why do you use the term brother roosters? Why brother and not simply rooster? Does it have some other meaning?

[@zedmeinhardt3404]

I understood it as part of the marketing campaign. Just branding so you think they are being treated well.

[@friendsgroup470]

Because they can't say COCK which is another name for PENIS😢

[@Black-ig6vh]

😂Pronouns 🤔

[@uuuultra]

to humanize them

[@kathycarraher5014]

It would indicate they are the same age as the female chickens .Not older. Chicks hatched at the same time.

[@Makes_me_wonder]

The hypocrisy of animal rights activists infuriates me

[@gorilladisco9108]

If you are a lawmaker, keep in mind that you shouldn't just thinking about what you want to accomplish. You also have to think about the unintended consequences of your proposed law.

[@DavidBenner-cy4zl]

Animal rights activists need to buy these young roosters with their own money, not tax money, and raise them on their own. Farming is a business.

[@zee4265]

And then she’s going to wonder why all the free range farms disappeared 😂

[@ESSBrew]

9:53 "a slaughtering house for boiling fowl" What does that statement even mean?! DO they mean a broiler chicken slaughterhouse?

[@mrtienphysics666]

i think we should stop culling humans

[@firmbutton6485]

?

[@kathycarraher5014]

Wars are how humans cull their extra males.

[@SilverSilence002]

😂😂😂.... Strangely I found myself agreeing.

[@mrtienphysics666]

@@SilverSilence002 there are some who dont agree

[@firmbutton6485]

@@SilverSilence002 agreeing with what?

[@theoryianabsolute8777]

Now ban all cruelty done on animals!!

[@tobyihli9470]

THAT….. IS THE WORST LAW I have ever heard of. I’m ashamed to say I’m half German.

[@sarahprice659]

I only recently learned about the culling, (even though it’s something that ought to be obvious to consumers). Usually it isn’t as humane as euthanasia. I think this law is going to make the issue worse, not better. We (humans) need to do better with our fellow earthlings.

[@MrNetAble]

Germany is gone Mad.

[@someguy2135]

The intention behind this law is admirable however they did not write it in such a way as to achieve what was intended. The only real result was to make consumers feel Justified to buy a product which is inherently cruel since the needless killing of individuals who can suffer and do not want to die is wrong.

[@joe9743]

All this law does is sweep the problem under the rug. The roosters probably end up suffering more as result

[@paradox_1729]

The journalist seems to be a animal welfare spokesperson. Minimal focus on the farmers.

[@absolutelyunepic3072]

Nobody cares about the farmer. The farmer is not cute and fluffy!

[@Richard482]

No job should be dependent on animal cruelty or environmental degradation.

[@MrAlejoos]

"People who are in favor of these policies or animal rights activists should start a business in the broiler or hen production industry and see if these policies help or make everything much more difficult.

[@marianlohr9746]

The only winning move is not to play. Just stop eating eggs...

[@jonathanperkins589]

Crazy how they're so worried about aborting the baby chicken after 13 days of incubation, when the chick can start to feel pain.... yet most proponents of abortion here in the states advocate legal abortion well past the stage where babies can experience severe pain, and in at least 9 states, it's fully legal..... are chickens more valuable than humans?

[@DAWN001]

“They” always select the victims that fit their ideology, so consistency in logical reasoning isn’t a criterion, I guess…

[@Manoo0413]

How does humans become more valuable than chicken? Is the world solely created for humans?

[@wolfram77]

Why we even allow male chic eggs to hatch? No pun intended

[@ickster23]

Why do we give government and bureaucrats so much power over our lives?

[@dwwolf4636]

This is just anti farmer regulation. You can't cull humanity if there's enough food.

[@brucejohnson1264]

Egg-laying breeds produce only a tiny amount of tough stringy meat, and take a long time to raise. You can literally raise three conventional Cornish cross chickens in the time it takes to raise one leghorn rooster.

[@Utuber8282]

Thank you for this informative report! 😢 It's so sad, though....

[@radigan196]

It is horrifying! We need to ditch eggs to save chicks and eat plant-based foods

[@amistenson2535]

That’s crazy how they just put them in a grinder. 😢 3:21 I HIGHLY doubt the chicks were anesthetized before being “shredded”. That’d be insanely expensive considering the cost of the drug, all the medical supplies, and the salaries of licensed/certified employees required to administer the drug(s).

[@JessicaO490Z]

Not to mention that if they use the byproduct and feed it would have The medication in it and costs whatever animal it was fed to to suffer the consequences.