The French farm ministry estimates the country's grain maize area will be 1.67 million hectares this year, down 5.5 percent on 2013, as good conditions for winter crops left less room for spring sowing. However, this year's grain maize area will still be 1.8 percent above the average of the past five years, the ministry said on Tuesday in its first estimate for the 2014 crop.
Maize and sunflower, also sown in spring, benefited last year from the replanting of fields after winter crops, notably rapeseed, suffered from poor weather conditions. The sunflower area was expected to fall 12 percent to 678,000 hectares, which would also be 6 percent below the five-year average, the ministry said. Sowing progress, however, had been faster than last year when cold, wet conditions in spring hampered field work.