France is to maintain a temporary ban on the cultivation of genetically modified crops, Prime Minister Jean-Marc Ayrault said on Saturday, dealing a blow to farmers and seed companies who say the move is economically harmful.

Speaking at a two-day environmental conference in Paris, Ayrault said he would also ban crop dusting in French agriculture, or use of aircraft to spray pesticides over broad areas of land.

He also said he would launch a call for tenders by the end of December for two off-shore wind farms, one off France's Atlantic coast near the island of Noirmoutier, and another in the English Channel, off the coast of Treport in Normandy. -- Reuters