<p>France will ban from next year the killing of male chicks by crushing or gassing, a practice denounced as barbaric by animal welfare groups, and will push for a similar measure at European level, the agriculture minister said on Sunday.</p>.<p>Each year, 50 million male chicks are culled in this way, Julien Denormandie said in an interview posted on the website of daily Le Parisien. Only females, future egg-laying hens, are kept alive.</p>.<p>"France is the first country in the world, along with Germany, to end the crushing and gassing of male chicks," Denormandie added.</p>.<p>The two countries will try to convince their European Union partners to outlaw the practice at a council of EU agriculture ministers on Monday, he said.</p>.<p>From 2022, breeders in France will instead need to equip themselves with machines to detect the sex of chicks before they hatch.</p>.<p>"The dynamic is well underway and, given the orders already placed, the machines will be installed for two-thirds of production in France by the end of the first quarter of 2022," Denormandie added.</p>.<p>The measure is expected to lead to an extra cost of 1 euro cent per box of six eggs, he said.</p>.<p>To help breeders buy the equipment, France will grant subsidies totalling 10 million euros ($11.8 million).</p>.<p>The castration of live piglets will also be prohibited from the start of 2022, Denormandie said.</p>
<p>France will ban from next year the killing of male chicks by crushing or gassing, a practice denounced as barbaric by animal welfare groups, and will push for a similar measure at European level, the agriculture minister said on Sunday.</p>.<p>Each year, 50 million male chicks are culled in this way, Julien Denormandie said in an interview posted on the website of daily Le Parisien. Only females, future egg-laying hens, are kept alive.</p>.<p>"France is the first country in the world, along with Germany, to end the crushing and gassing of male chicks," Denormandie added.</p>.<p>The two countries will try to convince their European Union partners to outlaw the practice at a council of EU agriculture ministers on Monday, he said.</p>.<p>From 2022, breeders in France will instead need to equip themselves with machines to detect the sex of chicks before they hatch.</p>.<p>"The dynamic is well underway and, given the orders already placed, the machines will be installed for two-thirds of production in France by the end of the first quarter of 2022," Denormandie added.</p>.<p>The measure is expected to lead to an extra cost of 1 euro cent per box of six eggs, he said.</p>.<p>To help breeders buy the equipment, France will grant subsidies totalling 10 million euros ($11.8 million).</p>.<p>The castration of live piglets will also be prohibited from the start of 2022, Denormandie said.</p>