“Every hectare counts, let’s not give up on our ambitions to preserve our land”, launches Emmanuel Hyest, president of the president of the National Federation of Land Development and Rural Establishment Companies (FNSafer), in the preamble to the annual study on agricultural land published by this organization, Wednesday May 22. This also highlights a point considered positive: the artificialization of land seems to have been declining for several years. Even if France has still lost 13,000 hectares of agricultural and natural spaces to the benefit of urbanization markets in 2023.
Beyond this fear is added, according to Mr. Hyest, “a pernicious phenomenon which directly threatens our agricultural and rural heritage: the hidden consumption of agricultural land”. These are in fact purchases of agricultural land by non-farmers for a change of use. FNSafer estimates that 15,000 to 20,000 hectares are diverted from their agricultural use each year.
The study shows that the land and meadow market reached 7.8 billion euros in 2023, up 4.9%. A result obtained despite a 5.3% decline in the number of hectares having changed hands to 454,000. In this context, national average prices are progressing little. The hectare of rented land and meadows reached 5,120 euros, an increase of 1.4%, and that of free land and meadows 6,250 euros (+ 1.5%).
“Relatively stable”
The vine market is very mixed. It reflects the lower sales of red wine and cognac while prestigious appellations in Côte-d’Or still arouse desire. This is how the average price of a hectare of AOP vines excluding champagne increases by another 1.5% to 153,000 euros. Conversely, that of a hectare of AOP brandy vines (cognac) fell by 6.4% to 56,000 euros and that of a hectare of non-PDO vines fell by 1.8%. at 15,000 euros. Thanks to some prestigious sales, the vineyard market jumped 15.8% to 1.17 billion euros in 2023.
“The agricultural land market is relatively stable. There is no need for any special tools », reacts Mr. Hyest, who rejects the project to create agricultural land investment groups (GFAI), originally introduced in the agricultural bill under discussion in the National Assembly. These groups must make it possible to raise money from private investors, benefiting from tax exemption measures in order to buy land and rent it to farmers.
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