The French potato area is shrinking compared to 2020. That is what Agreste expects. This Bureau of Statistics of the Ministry of Agriculture makes this claim based on the most recent estimates published this week.
Agreste estimates that 154.000 hectares of potatoes have been planted in France this season. This is a decrease in the area of 3,2% compared to last year, when 159.000 hectares of potatoes were grown. The average area over the period 2016 to 2020 is 146.000 hectares. If the provisional figures are correct, there is still an area growth of 5% compared to the 5,7-year average.
Serious alternatives
Due to the relatively high grain prices, a large number of French arable farmers have sown more grain. The area of cereal crops has increased by 3,4% compared to 2020 and amounts to approximately 9,2 million hectares. Protein crops such as peas, beans and lupins are also popular with French arable farmers. Of that number, it is growing by 5,2% to 328.000 hectares.
The French trade organization CNIPT attributes the shrinkage in the potato area mainly to the margins for growers, who are under considerable pressure. Rising cultivation costs in particular are seriously affecting the returns of (consumption) potato growers.
By the way, the harvest of early potatoes is in full swing in almost all major southern regions of France. According to some sources, the harvest of the early potatoes is going smoothly, partly helped by good weather conditions. In Alsace and Normandy, the early harvest is not expected to really get going until the end of the month.