NestFresh will introduce its new Humanely Hatched packaging on store shelves in early July 2025. The cartons feature the company’s industry-first use of in-ovo sexing technology to identify female embryos before hatch, a process independently verified by Humane Farm Animal Care under Certified Humane standards. Humanely Hatched is NestFresh’s proprietary brand for eggs sourced exclusively from hens selected prior to hatch, eliminating the need to incubate and cull male chicks on day one.
The packaging is produced with fully recyclable materials and includes clear labeling of the animal welfare advancements behind every egg. NestFresh partnered with Agri Advanced Technologies to deploy Cheggy, an in-ovo sexing solution that has processed more than 230 million eggs worldwide and supports scalable production without compromising hatchability or performance. Jasen Urena, executive vice president of NestFresh, said the company spearheaded efforts to bring this technology to the U.S. market and expects other producers to follow suit.
The initiative has been endorsed by leading animal welfare organizations. Humane Farm Animal Care’s executive director, Mimi Stein, described the program as a paradigm shift in egg production, and Nancy Roulston, senior director of corporate policy and animal science at ASPCA Farm Animal Welfare, noted its potential to spare hundreds of millions of chicks unnecessary suffering. The launch of Humanely Hatched packaging marks a milestone in transparent, sustainable, and humane egg farming.