French farmers will continue to expand their acreage under sunflowers in the 2023/24 season, reports Reuters news agency. According to the forecasts of the country's Ministry of Agriculture, the crop will immediately occupy 868 thousand hectares in the upcoming agricultural year - that is only 1% above the level of 2022/23, but 24% above the average of the last five years.
"Despite the low yields from the drought last year, sunflower seeds have remained attractive to French farmers due to favorable market prices and lower cultivation costs," says the IHK.
At the same time, a downward trend among cereals is emerging in France. Next season, according to agribusiness expectations, there will be a sharp decline in the area under corn to the lowest level in more than 30 years - 1,33 million hectares.
"The decline is expected due to high drought losses over the past year and a lower margin compared to growing other crops," the materials say.
For soft wheat, the Ministry has kept its estimate for 2023/24 at 4,77 million hectares (+1,6% per year).
Source: oleoscope (Russian)