Kipster’s foundation is deeply rooted in creating a sustainable, ethical, and transparent food production system that minimizes environmental impact.
Venlo, 1 June 2026 – Kipster is announcing a change in its management. Founder Ruud Zanders will hand over the role of CEO to Justin Buitenhuis on 1 July. Justin has been active as co-CEO since 1 May 2025. With this step, Kipster is preparing for a new phase of growth, professionalisation and international scaling.
Since its founding, Kipster has grown from a pioneer into an internationally recognised concept within the food chain. Under Ruud’s leadership, the company developed an innovative approach to animal welfare, sustainability and transparency in the food chain.
A new phase for Kipster
As Kipster enters a new phase of growth, this calls for a different approach to leadership, with a greater focus on scalability and international expansion. When Justin joined, it was agreed that he would in time take on the role of CEO in full. That moment has now arrived.
In line with this agreement, Justin will take over day-to-day leadership in full on 1 July. Together with Kipster’s team and partners, he will focus on the further development and scaling of the concept.
Ruud will remain involved with Kipster as a strategic advisor and ambassador of the mission. He will fulfil this role from OTA Food BV, the parent holding company under which Kipster operates. From that position within OTA Food, he will focus, among other things, on new initiatives within the broader food transition.
Ruud Zanders: “Kipster is my baby. In Justin, we have found someone who can help it grow and scale even further. After a year of working closely together, we share the confidence that this is the right moment for this step. I personally enjoy working on new initiatives within the food transition, and I will now have more room to do so. At the same time, I will stay involved with Kipster and look forward to sparring with Justin about the further development of the food system.”
Justin Buitenhuis: “I am impressed by Kipster’s vision and by what has been built up over the past years. I am grateful for the trust placed in me to take this to the next phase. My focus is on further expanding Kipster both nationally and internationally, so that we can increase our impact.”
Continuity of course
Kipster’s mission and direction remain unchanged. The change in management reflects Kipster’s development from a founder-driven initiative into an organisation that is ready for further growth and professionalisation.
In doing so, Kipster remains true to its own identity: open, transparent and focused on a food system that fits within the boundaries of the planet.
About Kipster
Kipster is working towards a food system that is feasible within the ecological boundaries of the planet. The company has developed an innovative concept for the production of eggs and shows that sustainable food production is possible in practice.
Media assets found here(the farm) and here(in ovo).
A bittersweet moment for a forward-thinking egg farmer who strives to raise male chickens. Kipster is among the first brands using in-ovo sexing technology to prioritize a more humane, sustainable food system.
North Manchester, Indiana, June 18, 2025 – Kipster, a global leader in animal welfare and sustainable egg farming, announces the use of in-ovo sexing technology. This serves as an alternative to culling male chicks at hatch.The company is second in the U.S. to use this cutting-edge approach. It allows for the sex determination of chick embryos in hatching eggs during incubation. The eggs with males are immediately removed once identified. This prevents the hatching and culling of the day-old male chicks, as is common in the U.S. egg industry.
The U.S. egg industry kills over 350 million male chicks each year after they hatch because they are deemed useless. They do not lay eggs and are not bred to put on as much weight as fast as broiler chickens. Opposed to the common practice of decades ago, when people consumed the by-product of egg farms as food — the male chickens. Nowadays, people eat predominantly meat chickens from the broiler industry.
Kipster’s goal is to give roosters a place in the food system. In doing so, the company makes use of all animals born into its poultry farms. Kipster is the very first commercial egg producer in the U.S. to not cull its male chicks when its U.S. farm opened in 2022. This approach is similar to Kipster’s practices in Europe. However, the company had to resort to doing so for the first time in 2024. This was due to a lack of suitable infrastructure and a retail market for males from breeds commonly used for egg production.
“We’re disappointed that we haven’t yet succeeded in raising male chicks in the U.S.,” said Ruud Zanders, Co-founder and Co-CEO of Kipster. “We see this as a shortcoming on our part—a failure to fully live up to our own vision. But allowing chicks to hatch only to be immediately gassed or macerated is standard industry practice in the U.S. That is simply not an option for us. That’s why we’re turning to in-ovo sexing as a temporary alternative.”
This choice allows Kipster to stay true to its values around animal welfare and waste reduction. At the same time, the company continues to work toward a more structural solution. Male embryos that are not identified by the in-ovo technology — about 0.5%, or roughly 150–200 chicks — will not be culled. They are planned to be raised at a farm. This means that the upcoming Kipster flock will be free of chick culling.
The Respeggt in-ovo sexing technology is used for the Kipster-hatching eggs at a Hendrix ISA hatchery. It is the first technology in the U.S. that uses DNA analysis to identify the sex of the embryos. It can be applied to both white and brown layer hen breeds.
Originally launching in the Netherlands in 2017, Kipster started egg production in the U.S. with its partner, MPS Egg Farms, in December 2022. Its eggs are available at Kroger and its many other site banners in 28 states. The first eggs produced by in-ovo sexed hens will be coming to the market in early 2026. It will take at least a year before all Kipster eggs will be free of male chick culling. Raising male chicks or applying in-ovo sexing is only one ethical practice at Kipster. These are part of a wider, continuous effort. The goal is to improve the living conditions and welfare of the laying hens and roosters.
The company invites stakeholders and the public to engage in discussions about this significant change. Input and ideas are welcome. Please email us at egg@kipster.farm to help prompt more solutions to further Kipster’s ethical and environmental standards.
“We applaud Kipster for being one of the first companies to adopt in-ovo sexing technology in the United States. This aligns with their commitment to end male chick culling. Now, consumers can know that the animals in Kipster’s supply chain are raised with higher welfare standards. They will also be hatched more humanely. We hope many other egg companies that are still practicing male chick culling follow suit. This would help make meaningful change for baby chicks.”
—Nancy Roulston, Senior Director of Corporate Policy and Animal Science
”Mercy For Animals commends Kipster’s leadership on adopting in-ovo sexing in the United States. Consumers are horrified to learn that male chicks in the egg industry are routinely killed, often ground up alive, shortly after hatching. They’re deemed useless by the industry. Kipster’s latest commitment to in-ovo sexing demonstrates its dedication to transparency. It also reflects a continuous effort to improve animal welfare.”
—Leah Garcés, CEO and president
“We are encouraged when producers, like Kipster, take innovative approaches towards improving animal welfare. By embracing technology to determine the sex of chicks before they hatch, egg producers can avoid the current practice of killing day-old male chicks. This, in turn, reduces animal suffering.”
—Karla Dumas, Vice President, Farm Animal Protection
The introduction of in-ovo sexing technology will allow specialty egg producers to create a new value-added category of more ethical eggs. This category will be massively successful in the market. Cost-effective technological solutions to major challenges like chick culling are critical to modernizing the U.S. egg supply chain. They are also essential to restoring consumer trust in animal agriculture. We applaud Kipster for continuing to demonstrate their leadership in the egg industry. They are one of the first producers to use this technology in the U.S.”
—Robert Yaman, CEO
“Each year, at just one day old, billions of male chicks are killed without a second thought. They are deemed a “by-product” by the egg industry. Years ago, The Humane League was instrumental in encouraging United Egg Producers to ban this practice that had become the standard in all commercial egg production. With alternative methods available, we’re eager to see male chick culling come to an end once and for all. We encourage all egg producers to adopt in-ovo sexing technologies like Kipster has to put a stop to this practice.”
—Giovana Vieira, Senior Animal Welfare Scientist
With the first farm open in October 2017 in the Netherlands, Kipster is a pioneer in sustainable and transparent farming. The company has consistently challenged conventional agriculture practices. It aims for a food system that respects farm animal welfare and minimizes environmental impact. In the U.S. the Kipster farm in North Manchester, Indiana produces the nation’s first certified climate-neutral eggs. They also recieved Compassion in World Farming’s Good Egg Award in 2024. The eggs are currently available in 12-count egg cartons at Kroger and its other banners in 28 states. Including; Kroger, Ralphs, Kings Soopers, QFC, Fred Meyer, City Market, Fry’s, Smiths, Mariano’s, Pick ‘n Save and Metro Markets and Smiths. For more information on Kipster, please visit https://www.kipster.farm.
Kipster Media Relations Contacts
Sandra Vijn
sandra@kipster.farm
215-704-9451
Washington, DC, 12/14/2022
The future of egg farming: environmentally-friendly and humane. World’s first carbon-neutral eggs drop in U.S
Kipster is a forward-thinking award-winning Dutch egg farmer. In 2017, they introduced the world’s first carbon-neutral egg to the Netherlands. Now, the eggs from the first American Kipster farm are available in Michigan and the Cincinnati area – with rapid scaling nation-wide to follow. Kipster thanks Kroger and MPS Egg Farms for partnering with Kipster to bring this revolutionary and sustainable form of egg farming to the USA.
7 groundbreaking reasons why egg farming is being transformed:
1. Certified Carbon Neutral®
Kipster achieves carbon neutrality by first reducing its greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions internally as much as possible. Any remaining emissions are then offset by supporting external carbon reduction projects. The eggs’ CarbonNeutral® product (not including use) certification means that Kipster is following The CarbonNeutral Protocol – in a clear, transparent and credible manner.
2. A revolutionary vision of poultry farming
By using upcycled feed, Kipster aims to avoid using land to grow crops for their chickens. “Growing crops to feed animals is an inefficient way to feed humans,” says Kipster’s Managing Director for the U.S., Sandra Vijn. “To produce eggs, you traditionally need a lot of corn and soy to feed the birds. If people ate these crops directly, we would need much less land and even have a food surplus – the planet would thank us. The current system, while considered ‘normal’, has many flaws.” Humans and farm animals should never have to compete for food.
3. Upcycled feed to reduce GHG emissions
Kipster chickens turn surplus food into healthy, fresh, and nutritious food for humans. They eat a newly developed feed that is made of (over 85 percent) surplus and by-products from crop and food processing, such as oat hulls and faulty pasta products. The resulting upcycled feed has a carbon footprint that’s about half that of conventional layer chicken feed. In this way, farm animals contribute to a sustainable and healthy food system and environment – as opposed to being a burden.
“Choosing Simple Truth + Kipster cage-free eggs is an easy way for our customers to help create a more sustainable food system,” says Denise Osterhues, Kroger’s senior director of Sustainability and Social Impact. “The Kipster system aligns with Kroger’s Zero Hunger | Zero Waste social and environmental impact plan and mission to advance positive changes for people and our planet. We focus on advancing sustainability and animal welfare in ways that also help maintain access to fresh, affordable foods for everyone.”
4. Better animal welfare
In close collaboration with scientists and animal welfare organizations, the Kipster Farm was designed for chickens and their needs. Layer hens are forest birds, and the farm is set up for them to carry out their natural behaviors.
The farm’s futuristic form follows its function of allowing chickens to roam outside or in an indoor playground filled with daylight and fresh air. With such a varied and enriched environment, beaks do not need to be trimmed.
“Kipster’s egg farming model offers extraordinary transparency and a holistic commitment to animals’ wellbeing that the public is seeking and which animals deserve,” says Nancy Roulston, senior director of corporate policy and animal science, ASPCA Farm Animal Welfare. “The ASPCA applauds Kipster’s innovative work to prove that higher welfare, sustainable farming can be achieved at scale, and we are proud to include their eggs on our Shop With Your Heart list.”
The egg cartons bear the Certified Humane® logo and are recognized by Shop With Your Heart®, a program by the ASPCA® that helps shoppers identify and find more humane groceries.
5. Raising roosters
Whether eggs are organic, free-range, or cage-free, the same number of laying hens and roosters are born every day in the world of egg farming. The male chicks born into the system are an unwanted byproduct because they – obviously – can’t lay eggs. Around 300 million one-day-old roosters are killed every year in the U.S. At Kipster, the brothers of the layers are raised in more friendly homes before being sent to a slaughterhouse for human consumption.
6. Clean air
The Kipster farm is the first in the U.S. to wash the air that leaves the barns. This removes dust, odor, ammonia, and other undesirable particles. Before the air leaves the barn, its heat is recovered by a heat pump which preheats incoming fresh air. Combined with the innovative ventilation system in the barn this lowers emissions significantly and creates a better in-house climate for both farmer and bird.
7. Unparalleled transparency
There is a 24/7 livestream of the Kipster farm. Anyone can watch the hens online. Kipster has nothing to hide. Drop by and visit the farm visitor center – complete with small exhibition.
Where to buy?
Kipster Eggs are sold co-branded with Kroger’s label as Simple Truth + Kipster. The eggs are now available in the Cincinnati area and in Michigan. With more farms now being built in the U.S., Kipster eggs will be available in more places beginning in late spring 2023.
Contact and guided tours
Sandra Vijn, Managing Director Kipster U.S.
sandra@kipster.farm
+1 215-704-9451
Washington, DC, 10/03/2022
Kipster is ending the habit of culling male chicks by letting the brothers of egg-layers grow up to become an alternative meat source
In the U.S. alone, around 300 million male chicks are killed every year in the egg industry. It’s basic biology: when layer hens are born, an equal number of roosters are also destined to hatch. Unfortunately, these male chicks are discarded as if they are worthless since they do not – obviously – lay eggs. They are also leaner and do not gain weight as efficiently as their cousins in the meat industry. So, they are killed.
Part of egg production
It is an inconvenient truth that 50% of all newborn chicks in the U.S. are killed as part of egg production. In the coming weeks, the first Kipster roosters will reach 15 weeks of age (traditional meat broilers live around 6 weeks). These American roosters will then be processed into meat products for humans. Kipster, a newcomer to the U.S. egg market, is not willing to wait until technological solutions become available that can identify and kill males while they are still in the egg. Instead, they are raising them. Sandra Vijn, Kipster: “We are taking our responsibility now. We let the roosters live. If people choose to eat chicken, then why not the rooster brothers of our hens? As a result, fewer broilers will be needed for meat.”
Untapped source of protein
Roosters and spent hens from egg farmers are an untapped source of meat. Layer hens become meat after around 90 weeks after their laying period ends. One pound of rooster and hen meat can replace one pound of broiler meat. Nancy Roulston, Senior Director of Corporate Policy and Animal Science, ASPCA®: “The conventional egg industry has justified everything from immobilizing hens in cages to destroying millions of newborn chicks as the cost of doing business. Kipster’s welfare-centered approach to egg production shows that suffering is not an inevitability when businesses marry compassion with innovation. The ASPCA hopes that food companies recognize the incredible opportunity Kipster offers to improve animal welfare in their supply chains.”
Why do we not eat hens?
The layer is a marathon runner: she needs to lay as many eggs as possible for as long as possible. Broilers are more sprinters: they need to gain as much weight as possible in the least amount of time. Layers and roosters carry little meat on their bones. That makes meat from the egg industry considerably more expensive. However: waste not, want not… Dr. Hillary Dalton, Senior Research Manager, Compassion in World Farming: “Currently almost all male layer chicks in the United States are placed in a macerator immediately after hatching, where they are ground up and killed. Their painful and inhumane deaths represent an immense amount of unnecessary suffering and a waste of resources to incubate millions of eggs of unwanted male chicks. Compassion in World Farming USA believes both male roosters and laying hens deserve the opportunity to have full and enriched lives. We are thrilled to see Kipster’s expansion into the United States and their pioneering efforts to eliminate the greatest welfare and waste problems in the U.S. laying hen industry.”
Game-changer
As a game-changing system for egg production, Kipster combines a whole range of first-ever innovations on their farms besides eliminating male chick culling:
Note for editors
Please contact
Sandra Vijn, Chief Farm Officer, Kipster U.S.
sandra@kipster.farm
+1 215 704 9451
Washington, DC, 09/04/2022
Very first Kipster chicks hatched on U.S. soil. Americans can start saying hello to carbon-neutral eggs and meat
What makes Kipster a new chapter in sustainable egg farming? It comes down to three core innovations:
Improving well-being
Our farms are designed around the chicken’s instincts and needs. We see chickens as beings with desires and feelings – they both suffer and enjoy. Chickens are forest birds, which means they’re not fans of open plains and they hate rain. That’s why we created a natural-like wooded environment – both indoors and outdoors – with plenty of variety, daylight, fresh air and free-range foraging space. The park is fenced and netted off to keep out hungry predators and bird flu carriers.
Closing cycles
Our chickens eat specially developed feed made of safe by-products from food manufacturing, such as from large bakeries. In fact, our feathery friends upcycle these food production remains into new valuable proteins for people. In this way, we bypass using agricultural land and we don’t need to plough up any more native grasslands or forests for feeding our animals. The CO2 footprint of this feed is 50% less than standard chicken feed. But this is only part of what helps us achieve a carbon-neutral egg. We also use solar panels to power our farms and treat the chicken litter. And to achieve full carbon neutrality, we compensate for any extra emissions. (Meanwhile, as we get started in the U.S., our roosters will begin with a regular chicken diet. However, over time, we will reduce our environmental footprint by moving away from using soy and corn.)
Raising Roosters
It’s a boy! As biological law goes, half of the hatched eggs will be girls and half will be boys. We keep both: the hens to lay eggs and the roosters for meat. By raising the brothers of the layers, we go off the beaten track. We think it’s our ethical duty to do this. As National Geographic puts it: “It’s one of the most jaw-dropping, least-known facts of American food production: to keep the egg industry running efficiently, hatcheries kill hundreds of millions of newborn male chicks every year.”
Stay tuned
In early 2023, Kipster carbon-neutral eggs and meat products will be available in limited quantities on U.S. retail shelves.
We are thankful for our partners MPS Egg Farms and The Kroger Company who are working closely with us to make this happen. Kipster has also received welcome guidance from animal welfare organizations like the ASPCA® (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®) and others as we get off the ground in the U.S.
More information?
Please contact
Sandra Vijn, Chief Farm Officer, Kipster U.S.
sandra@kipster.farm
+1 215 704 9451
Kipster Farm
800 Wabash Rd
North Manchester, IN 46962
email: egg@kipster.farm
Hi – What can I do to help? Please don’t hesitate to send me a message.
I’m Sandra Vijn, Chief Farm Officer in the US. I grew up on a small tulip farm in the Netherlands. I have worked in the sustainable agriculture space in the US for many years. I left World Wildlife Fund in April and joined the Kipster team to lead the enterprise.
Kipster is operated by MPS Egg Farms
