France has pledged to outlaw the practice of culling unwanted male chicks by the end of 2021, as part of animal welfare reforms.
About seven billion male chicks – not wanted for meat or eggs – are killed around the world each year, usually in shredding machines or by gas.
The government said new methods were emerging that would make it possible to test the sex of embryos inside the egg.
But some campaigners said the reforms did not go far enough.
