France and Germany should be the European motor to advance on this issue," Guillaume said during a visit to his German counterpart, Klöckner. Germany's presidency of the bloc in the second half of 2020 is an opportunity to push forward on the issue, Klöckner said. In many poultry businesses, male chicks are separated from females soon after hatching and killed, as they do not produce eggs and generate less meat. READ ALSO: Germany allows slaughter of male chicks to continueFrance and Germany now plan to bring together industry groups, companies, researchers and campaign groups to "share scientific knowledge" and "implement alternative methods". Austrian and French firms are working on less-invasive techniques, while scientists in other countries are looking into genetically modified chickens.

Source: The Local January 13, 2020 17:15 UTC