France's farm ministry on Tuesday estimated the country's area sown with soft wheat for the 2024 harvest will reach 4.49 million hectares, down 5.1% compared with the area harvested this year.

In its first sowing estimates for next year's harvest, the ministry projected the winter barley area at 1.31 million hectares, down 4.0%, and the rapeseed area at 1.35 million hectares, up 0.5%. (Reporting by Gus Trompiz Editing by Kirsten Donovan)