This monitoring period primarily focuses on France's northern-western mixed cropping regions, encompassing the Northern barley zone, the Mixed maize_barley and rapeseed zone from the Centre to the Atlantic Ocean, and the Maize_barley and livestock zone along the English Channel. These regions represent France's major cereal production areas. During January to March 2025, cereals in these regions were in the green-up stage, with harvest expected in June 2025.

Remote sensing monitoring data indicate that the cereal planting area in these regions reached 4,587.3 thousand hectares, representing a 2.7% increase compared to 4,465.0 thousand hectares in 2024. Due to the extremely similar spectral characteristics of winter wheat and winter barley during the green-up period, remote sensing cannot effectively differentiate between them at this stage. Based on historical planting proportions in the region, wheat cultivation is estimated at approximately 3,616.1 thousand hectares, while barley covers about 970.4 thousand hectares.

Cereal yields are projected to decrease by 3.3% year-on-year, with an average yield of 7.4 tons per hectare. This decline is primarily attributed to persistent rainfall in northern regions during the sowing period, which delayed planting and affected the normal growth cycle of wheat. Since the beginning of spring, the northwestern regions have experienced cumulative precipitation 10.9% above the fifteen-year average, resulting in waterlogged field conditions that may impact winter cereal yields and necessitate replanting of spring crops.

Overall, despite the increase in planted area, unfavorable climatic conditions are creating downward pressure on both yield and total production of cereals in France's major producing regions. Continued wet weather may further affect crop growth and harvest, requiring close monitoring of subsequent climate changes and their impact on agricultural production.

Figure 1 Distribution of Cereal Yields in France in 2025