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Summary of our market study
The French market for seeds and sheaths is estimated at 4 billion euros.
The French seed market is the largest in Europe.
France is the world's leading exporter of seeds, with exports worth over 1.5 billion euros. Germany accounts for 15-17% of total exports, and Spain for 9-11%.
The seed sector is adapting to meet the growing demand for food production, driven by a world population expected to reach 10 billion by 2050.
France develops over 450 new plant varieties a year, and invests heavily in research and development, which accounts for between 10 and 15% of the sales of companies in the sector.
Corn, sorghum, straw cereals and protein crops make up the bulk of the sector, but the portfolio ranges from traditional starch crops to vegetable and flower seeds.
Market players in the French seed industry
Breeding companies: the innovators of seed varieties
- Breeding companies are at the forefront of innovation in the seed market. They devote considerable resources to developing new, high-performance varieties. These companies, of which there are 69 in France, contribute an impressive 450 new varieties every year
- Agri Obtentions: renowned for its work on straw cereals and oilseeds
- BASF France: Global chemical giant with a strong presence in the plant science sector
- Limagrain Europe: This cooperative is a market leader with a portfolio of cereals, oilseeds and vegetable seeds
- Bayer Seeds: Part of Bayer's Crop Science division, it focuses on the development of seeds and traits that improve productivity and reduce agriculture's impact on the environment.
- Vilmorin, a French leader with a leading position in the global vegetable seed industry
Producers
- Euralis Semences: Leader in corn and sunflower seeds
- KWS France: This company excels in the production of straw cereal, oilseed and industrial beet seeds
- Germicopa: Specialized in potato seeds
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Summary and extracts
1 Market overview
1.1 Definition and presentation
The seeds market in France is a study of the economic activity related to the primary inputs of the agricultural sector, whose function is to sow crops.
Agricultural seeds and grains are consumable agri-supply products. There are several product categories in this market:
- Agricultural seeds: there are many types of agricultural seeds, the most widespread being barley, soybean, millet, rice, legumes, corn, straw cereals (wheat and barley), sunflower, rapeseed, flax and cotton.
- Vegetable seeds: segmented by vegetable type, these include cabbage, melon, corn, eggplant, bell pepper, lettuce, carrot, watermelon, onion and many others.
- Seeds: there are different criteria for classifying seeds. Firstly, their water content (dry seeds or watery seeds), then the proportion and distribution of their tissues (seeds with perisperm, seeds with albumen or seeds without albumen or exalbuminous seeds), and finally their envelope(naked seeds, simple naked fruits, simple clothed fruits, compound fruits).
In 2022, France will benefit from almost 400,000 hectares of cultivation of these products. France is not only Europe's leading consumer market for seeds, but also the world's leading exporter: in recent years, France has exported an average of over 1.5 billion euros worth of seeds worldwide. By 2022 - 2023, its leading export customers will be European: Germany will account for 16% of total exports, Spain 10% and Poland 6.7%, closely followed by Italy (6.4%) and the Netherlands (4%).
The primary factor driving growth in the sector is the increase in the world's population, which is expected to reach almost 10 billion people by 2050. This means a constantly growing demand for agriculture and food production, and consequently for agricultural raw materials such as seeds and grains. The main market driver is therefore demographic growth, but there is also the need to adapt agricultural varieties to climate change. This is a strong argument in favor of seed companies, who are investing in R&D to adapt their offer.
In fact, this is what the world leader Vilmorin & Cie is doing , with the French company leading the market and investing 14.6% of its revenues in R&D in 2023. The seed subsidiary of the Limagrain cooperative has established itself as the world leader in vegetable seeds, even overtaking the giants Bayer-Monsanto and Syngenta. It has recently positioned itself in the fennel, lamb's lettuce, spinach, chard and radish markets, strategically targeting niches for growth.
In 2020, the Covid-19 epidemic had no significant impact on the sector, while the Russian-Ukrainian crisis underway since February 2022 has brought its share of bad news. In 2023, the two countries concerned accounted for around 7% of French seed company exports, compared with almost 12% in 2021.
1.2 The global market
The global seed market was valued at US$**.* billion in ****, and is expected to continue growing at a CAGR of *.*% to reach US$**.* billion in ****.
World seed market World, **** - ****, in billions of USD Source: ****
The sector's growth is driven by the ever-increasing population and, consequently, by the growing need for ...
1.3 The domestic market
The French seed industry is a very important sector, both nationally and internationally. Indeed, the French market ranks first in Europe, and third worldwide, behind the United States and China. The seeds market has been growing for several years, reaching *.* billion euros in **** - ****. It grew by **.*% between **** - **** and **** - ...
1.4 Balance of trade
France is by far the leading seed producer in Europe. It produces far more than it consumes, and a large proportion of its production is exported, mainly to its European neighbors. In fact, the latter received **% of French exports in ****. The coverage rate (***) is therefore very high. It is generally around ...
2 Demand analysis
2.1 Growing food demand
The world's population has been exploding in recent years. On November *, ****, the world's population reached * billion. On average, the population has grown by *.*% every year since ****.
World population trends World, **** - ****, in billions of people Source: ****
This upward trend is set to continue in the years ahead. Indeed, projections estimate that ...
2.2 Confidence in farmers drives local demand
Farming is a particularly popular profession in the French imagination. Indeed, although farmers don't always feel the support of the general public, **% of French people have a good opinion of farmers. In fact, farmers rank in the top * of French people's favorite professions, behind firefighters (***).
French people's favorite professions France, ****, in Source: ...
2.3 Stakeholders' needs drive farmers' choices
Farmers have to adapt to the needs of the population in order to offer appropriate products. Crops and seeds must meet the needs of French consumers for food, as well as those of producers, distributors and manufacturers.
Semences de France has drawn up a ranking called"Les Préférées ...
3 Market structure
3.1 Seeds and seeds value chain
The seeds and grains market involves many players, who must coordinate their efforts to meet public demand.
Source: ****
The concentration of breeding and production activities has increased steadily in recent years. Indeed, groups and companies with sales in excess of €*** million now account for more than half of the industry's sales ...
3.2 Very specific professions
Breeders
Breeders, and more generally plant breeding companies, produce first-generation seeds. This research work is carried out both in the fields and greenhouses, and in the laboratory. The business model of these companies is based on research and development. On average, they invest **% of their sales in R&D, compared with ...
3.3 The main players
Industry bodies
SEMAE (***) is theinterprofessional organization for all players in the seed industry. SEMAE's activities revolve around a clearly established raison d'être in ****:"to ensure the availability and supply of quality seeds and plans by adapting to the diverse expectations of farmers, gardeners and consumers in France and in different ...
4 Offer analysis
4.1 Different types of seeds
There are many varieties of seeds and grains, divided into several categories and sub-categories. These seeds are grown in different ways and do not require the same soil and weather conditions to thrive. For this reason, many farmers grow only one species or variety, adapted to the local climate and conditions. ...
4.2 Seed prices
Seed prices fluctuate widely. In fact, seed production is highly variable from one year to the next, due to the vagaries of the weather; prices are therefore also affected. In recent years, farm-gate prices for seeds and seedlings have experienced several inflationary periods (***). While prices were on a downward trend until ...
4.3 Supply trends: organic and nutrition
Organic farming on the up
The development of organic farming in the seed sector is complex, but is becoming increasingly widespread. Even if certain obstacles persist and do not favor this type of cultivation, the R&D departments of companies, as well as the work of breeders, should be able to ...
4.4 Concerns about seed availability
Shrinking farmland
The number of hectares available for seed multiplication in France is declining every year. In the forage and turf sector, acreage has fallen by **% in favor of field crops, and farmers have effectively had to make their own choices. The aforementioned surge in cereal and oilseed prices has prompted ...
5 Regulations
5.1 General seed regulations
Registration of varieties in official catalogs
In order to be marketed, a variety must be registered in the official French catalogs. It is then registered directly at European Union level, in catalogs listing all varieties authorized in the territories concerned. To do this, a variety must be different from those already ...
6 Positioning the players
6.1 Segmentation
On August *, ****, the world's fourth-largest seeds company Vilmorin was delisted from the Paris stock exchange following the success of thesimplified takeover bid launched by its majority shareholder Limagrain in April of that year. The aim of Limagrain, an agricultural cooperative owned by *,*** farmers in central France, was to be able to ...
- Vilmorin (Groupe Limagrain)
- Deleplanque
- Florimond Desprez
- Perles d'Anjou - CAPL (Coopérative agricole des Pays de la Loire)
- Syngenta
- Bayer Crop Science
- Corteva
- Semae
- HM Clause France
- Vandinter Semo
- Vivadour
- Lidea (Euralis)
List of charts presented in this market study
- Seeds sales
- Breakdown of sales by seed category
- Balance of trade for seeds
- Distribution of farmers - multipliers by type of seed
- Breeders by type of seed
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Latest news
Vilmorin bids farewell to the Paris Bourse after Limagrain's successful takeover bid - 11/08/2023
- Vilmorin is the world's fourth-largest seeds company.
- Its historical shareholder, the Limagrain cooperative, held 71.25% of its shares.
- Limagrain had crossed the threshold of 90% of the French seeds company's capital and voting rights.
- Vilmorin was valued at 1.43 billion euros, with 7,200 employees.
- The company's sales for fiscal 2021-2022 were 1.587 billion euros, with net income of 95.4 million euros.
- Limagrain is present in 49 countries and is owned by 1,300 farmers.
Seeds: Germany's Bayer invests in Landes | Bayer invests in Landes - 04/08/2023
- Investment of 11 million euros for new corn and rapeseed production line at Peyrehorade plant
- Bayer invests between 30 and 50 million euros annually at its 9 French sites
- Bayer's seed business generated sales of 465 million euros last year, i.e. around a third of sales in France
- Acquisition of the plant when Monsanto was acquired in 2018 Employment of 200 permanent staff and 270 seasonal workers at peak times.
Perles d'Anjou quinoa plant to be delivered in 2024 - 05/06/2023
- Project initiated by CAPL (Coopérative agricole des Pays de la Loire) and Abbottagra, players in the Quinoa d'Anjou sector.
- CAPL: sales of 246 million euros by 2022.
- Quinoa d'Anjou chain created 15 years ago.
- 400 producers involved.
- Annual production of around 3,000 tonnes.
- French and European leader in quinoa production.
- Perles d'Anjou industrial site under construction, 22,000 m2 on a 7-hectare site.
- Investment of 16 million euros.
- Target markets: food industry, supermarkets, specialty stores and foodservice.
Limagrain wants to take seed company Vilmorin off the stock market - 02/05/2023
- Vilmorin is the world's fourth largest seed company.
- The cooperative Limagrain, Vilmorin's controlling shareholder, holds 71.25% of the shares and will launch a simplified tender offer for the remaining 28.75%.
- The seed company generated around 10% of its sales in Russia and Ukraine.
- The Limagrain cooperative group boasts sales of 2.1 billion euros and net income of 82 million euros.
- Every year, Vilmorin invests over 16% of its sales in research and development.
- Vilmorin generates around 75% of its sales from field seeds and 25% from vegetable seeds.
Vilmorin: First-half profits thanks to field crops. - 31/03/2023
- Sales for the first half (to end December) of the 2022/2023 financial year: 706.5 million euros
- - Sales growth: 24.6%
- - Organic growth: 19.6%
- - Field seeds (61.2% of sales): 38.3% increase
- - Vegetable Seeds: 0.7% decline
Neonicotinoid ban: seed company Deleplanque develops new beet varieties - 13/03/2023
- Yellows destroyed 60% of the French sugar beet harvest in 2018
- The company generates annual sales of €145 million and employs 500 people worldwide
- This is a unique business opportunity for the Deleplanque Group, Europe's second-largest seed company and France's third-largest sugar beet producer
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The seed and grains market | France
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