In 2024, nearly half of the fertilized eggs exported from the Czech Republic to non-EU countries were shipped to Russia. According to the Czech-Moravian Poultry Union, 54.2 million out of 110.4 million exported hatching eggs went to Russia.
“If our suppliers stop exporting hatching eggs to Russia, they risk permanently losing this key trade partner. Finding new markets would be difficult since Europe already has an oversupply of hatching eggs,” said Gabriela Dlouhá, chair of the union. She also noted that trade with Russia has declined this year.
Top destinations for Czech hatching eggs in 2024:
- Russia: 54.2 million eggs
- Ukraine: 29.4 million eggs (an increase of 2.1 million from 2023)
- Serbia: Nearly 22 million eggs
In addition to hatching eggs, day-old chicks made up the largest share of live animal exports. Czech breeders exported 27.3 million chicks in 2024, with 26.9 million going to Ukraine. Only 55,845 chicks were sent to Russia, slightly more than in 2023. However, Albania, Moldova, and the UK received more Czech chicks than Russia.
Overall, Czech exports of day-old chicks declined by 9.6 million compared to 2023.
