European creators of technology that can detect the gender of unhatched chicks say Australia is high on their wish list of countries they are hoping to export to once the equipment is up and running.

It's estimated worldwide, more than three billion male chicks a year are euthanased within days of hatching, either by exposure to toxic gas or a crush practice referred to as "macerating''.

Footage obtained by welfare group Animal Liberation and released yesterday shows thousands of male chicks being carried along a conveyor belt before dropping into an industrial crushing machine.

A crate of new chicks at a chicken hatchery. ( Supplied by Australian Chicken Meat Federation )

Convenor of the Australian Free Range Egg Club Phil Westwood said the practice of euthanasing male chicks was widely accepted as industry standard, despite the practice being widely condemned on social media.

"Male chicks are treated as a by-product because they will never lay eggs and do not grow quickly enough to be meat birds, so they are of no value to the industry," Mr Westwood said.

"About 50 per cent of all chicks hatched are disposed of when they are a day old."

Technology available by 2018

Wouter Bruins of Netherlands-based company In Ovo told the ABC his company had created technology that could detect the gender of an unhatched chick on the ninth day of gestation with an accuracy rate of 95 per cent.

He said he understood why the hatchery industry viewed male chicks as a by-product, but was inspired to develop the technology to eliminate the "ghastly method" of mass euthanasing.

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"But as we progressed with the technology, we realised we are not only satisfying our welfare concerns but we could increase efficiency in the poultry industry," Mr Bruins said.

"A lot of people think with animal welfare comes a decrease in efficiency, but it doesn't have to always be the case."

Mr Bruins said the technology was now able to detect the gender of an unborn chick in 0.8 of a second and be a working model by mid 2017.

Poultry no longer a 'closed industry'

Mr Bruins also said the poultry industry in Europe had benefitted by "opening its doors" to consumers and taking on board an increased demand for animal welfare.

"Now that they are opening up, it's not that weird these days," Mr Bruins said.

"It's an open topic now, consumers are much more savvy and they want change and I believe the hatcheries do too. That transparency has benefitted everyone, including the animals."

Mr Bruin said an early business model the company was considering would see farmers charged per egg tested, a fee that could be passed on to consumers whom he believed would either not notice or be happy to cover the "minimal" increased cost.

He said Australia was high on the list of preferred countries it was hoping to export the technology to, perhaps as early as 2018.

"Australia for us is one of our main focus points," Mr Bruins said.

"It's a country that, like Europe, is very much interested in animal welfare and I would be very interested in how it would be received there."

Liberation group welcomes advance in technology

Campaign director for Animal Liberation Emma Hurst urged the Australian hatchery industry to take heed of the developing technology.

"No-one can reasonably argue that this isn't a welfare issue; it is barbaric," Ms Hurst said.

"The Australian Egg Corporation should be making the same commitment as Germany and the US to stop the mass killing of day-old male chicks."