From 1 January 2022, the killing of day-old chicks for economic reasons will be banned in Germany. Many laying hen farms and hatcheries in particular need solutions. In addition to the various methods of sex determination in eggs and the use of dual-purpose chickens, where both roosters and hens can be raised and used for eggs or meat, the rearing of brother roosters from laying lines is currently being examined.

Robert Sperrer from Eiermacher in Austria presented challenges and solutions based on more than six years of experience. The Eiermacher began rearing brother roosters from laying lines and marketing them as chicken meat in various products back in 2014. Before the decision was made to rear brother roosters of the Lohmann Sandy breed, rearing was also carried out with the Lohmann Dual breed. Since 2016, organic eggs have only been marketed with cockerel rearing. Last year, a slaughterhouse was put into operation that was specially designed for the slaughter of brother roosters. This means that a reliable structure for brother rooster rearing and marketing is now available.

Some of the farm managers who took part in the meeting already rear brother roosters on their own farms, have partnerships with farms that rear brother roosters, or are currently finding out about the various options. This led to an interesting discussion. One thing became particularly clear: German poultry farms still face a variety of challenges in terms of rearing, slaughtering and marketing capacities.