It is a well-known fact that male chicks from egg-laying hens are killed on the day of birth, but few people know that chickens raised for meat are similarly sorted on their first day, and “substandard” chicks are being killed on a daily basis. Chicks that are weak, have congenital shape anomalies such as too many legs, are too small, inflamed or dirty are considered “substandard.” Since about two out of every 100 chicks are killed, it is estimated that about 14 million birds (8 to 16 million birds) are killed immediately after birth in Japan each year. The most common way to kill chicks in the country is to…