French farmers are considering replacing corn with sunflower seeds due to rising costs.

French farmers are considering reducing corn acreage and expanding sunflower cultivation in the face of rising production costs, especially fertilizers and energy, according to Benoît Piétriement, director-general of the Intercéréales grain association, in a statement to Reuters on Wednesday (25). According to the executive, producers are facing strong cost pressures, aggravated by the war involving the United States, Israel and Iran. "I have heard that farmers are replacing corn with sunflowers," he stated, highlighting that the movement is more intense in the south of the country, where there is a greater concentration of corn producers and less availability of fertilizers. Sunflowers present themselves as a more viable alternative because they require less input, especially fertilizers and energy, compared to corn—a more cost-intensive crop. The extent of this change will be defined in the coming weeks, as the start of corn planting approaches, traditionally carried out from April in France. This possible migration is not unprecedented. In 2022, French farmers had already expanded the area planted with sunflowers at the expense of corn, given the surge in fertilizer and gas prices following Russia's invasion of Ukraine. According to Piétriement, the current situation may be the most difficult ever faced by producers, as it combines high costs with lower agricultural prices—a scenario opposite to that of 2022, when the reduction in global supply boosted grain prices.

This text was translated by machine from Brazilian Portuguese.