French farmers call for EU aid to mitigate impact of poor grain harvest

French wheat growers are calling for the release of the EU’s crisis funding, known as agricultural reserve, and increased state aid for the sector as persistent rains since last autumn are leading to poor harvests in major European grain-producing countries.

“The further we get into the harvest, the more disappointing it is. This is probably the worst year for soft wheat since 2016,” Philippe Heusele, secretary general of the General Association of Wheat Producers in France (AGPB), told Euractiv.

With abundant rain since last autumn, cereal growers – and wheat growers in particular – are in dire straits in Western Europe, hit by a drop in area under wheat and decimated yields.

On Monday (28 July), French Agriculture Minister Marc Fesneau visited a farm in central France and announced “exceptional measures to support cash flow” that could be mobilised at the national and European level, as well as “action by banks and insurance companies”.

Although the minister mentioned the possibility of starting talks with Brussels to mobilise the EU’s agricultural reserve—formerly known as the crisis reserve—no decision has been made yet.

Meanwhile, the AGPB is urging the French government to ask for the release of these funds. The agricultural reserve, a mechanism under the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) worth €450 million annually, provides financial support to farmers facing difficulties.

The mechanism was first triggered in 2023, following Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, to help Eastern European countries manage increased imports of cereals and oilseeds.

Loss of yields in Europe

According to Philippe Heusele, France should produce 62 tonnes of soft wheat per hectare this year, a drop of 15-17% compared to 2023.

At the EU level, the latest market report from the International Grains Council (IGC), published on 28 July, predicts that the bloc’s wheat production will hit a four-year low of 128.7 million tonnes.

In Eastern Europe, conditions look slightly more favourable. In Romania, another major producer of soft wheat, output is expected to be better than last year, according to the EU’s crop monitoring service (MARS) – 4.65 tonnes per hectare compared with 4.55 in 2023.

Nevertheless, winter crops have been the hardest hit by the persistent rainfall throughout the growing season.

Barley has been the worst affected, with the latest data from the French Ministry of Agriculture predicting a 17% drop compared to last year.

The same is true for Germany, Europe’s second-largest producer after France, where winter barley yields are expected to fall by 6% from 2023 according to the latest projections from the German association of farm cooperatives (DRV).

For rapeseed, the forecast is for a 7.7% decline year-on-year in France, while Germany’s outlook is also bleak, according to national media.

Agricultural reserve

Meanwhile, a source in the French agriculture ministry told Euractiv that the minister is looking at ways to use the crisis reserve to support cash flow.

At the Agriculture and Fisheries Council on 27 May, ministers said they wanted to strengthen this mechanism.

They also called for an increase in de minimis aid – subsidies that EU member states can grant without informing the Commission – to €50,000 per farm over three years. The current limit for the agricultural sector is €20,000 or €25,000 if there is a centralised register of subsidies.

This request is supported by French producers, in particular the AGPB.

The Commission is currently considering raising the ceiling to €37,000 per farm to take account for inflation.

While the French agriculture ministry has no plans to make use of state aid for the time being, the issue of the de minimis ceiling has been discussed, according to the ministry source, who pointed out that “there is very little chance that the ceiling of €20,000 per farm will be reached”.

The ministry is expected to clarify whether it will trigger European and national aid when it takes stock of the grain harvest in mid-August.

[Edited by Sofía Sánchez Manzanaro and Zoran Radosavljevic]