Founded in 2013 by Dr. Wouter Bruins and Dr. Wil Stutterheim of Leiden University, In Ovo has developed technology to identify a biomarker associated with male embryos.  The process requires extraction of a minute quantity of allantoic fluid from the egg that is then subjected to mass spectrometry to determine gender.

In commenting on the investment, Bernhard Mohr, head of the Evonik Venture Capital, stated “In Ovo has reached a crucial milestone with a successful scaling up of its unique technology.”  He added, “Since we first invested and partnered with In Ovo in 2018, the ethical problem of culling chicks has gained attention and calls for a solution have become louder.” 

Dr. Bruins noted, “We are continuously improving our technology on speed, accuracy, and day of testing.”  He added, “I am confident that we are well placed to meet the market and regulatory demands.”  According to legislation passed in Germany, by 2024 gender assignment must occur before day-6 of incubation, which is currently not possible.  In Ovo has installed a gender typing machine in a hatchery and 150,000 commercial level pullets have been placed.  In Ovo has not released any data on livability and performance of pullets subjected to their gender determination procedure.

The approach used by In Ovo is reminiscent of the tecnnology developed by Embrex in the 1990s. The system was developed by Dr. Catherine Ricks to assay allantoic fluid from embryos at about 16 days of incubation. The equipment classified and segregated eggs with male and female embryos for separate-sex broiler growout. In the event, interest in growing cockerel and pullet chicks on different farms of a complex waned and cost and other factors inhibited commercial adoption.