Each of the main regions of France is a territory with its own culture and traditions, but not having its own legislation, although the regions have autonomy. In total, the French territory consists of 27 regions: 22 of them belong to the mother country (i.e., are located on the mainland), and the remaining 5 are overseas territories, to which Martinique, Guadeloupe, Reunion, Guiana and Mayotte belong. However, in this article we will focus on continental France, since it occupies a central place in the Francophonie.
The main industrial areas of France are le-de-France, Rhone-Alpes, Midi-Pyrénées. Lorraine is also one of the "giants" of the industry. As for the main agricultural regions of France, there are no fewer of them: Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur, Brittany, Normandy and New Aquitaine.
Ile de France
Ile de France, or the “Paris region”, is the heart of France, where previously all the main production was concentrated, but in recent years it has become increasingly carried outside of Paris. In this area of France is the center of the perfumery and cosmetics industry - the largest corporation in the world based in the field of perfumery and cosmetics - L'Oréal.
They are also involved in the aircraft industry, the production of space equipment and the automotive industry (they produce such brands as Renault, PSA Peugeot Citroën, Renault Tech).
Rhone Alps
The Rhone-Alpes is widely known for its ski resorts not only in Europe but also around the world. This region of France is also prosperous, with a well-developed economy, it is slightly inferior to the Ile-de-France region. The three main cities - Lyon, Saint-Etienne and Grenoble are leaders in textile manufacturing, pharmaceuticals and lighting.
18% of France’s electricity is generated in the Rhône-Alpes region by four nuclear power plants, thermal power plants near Lyon and hydroelectric power plants on the Loire, Isère and Rhone rivers.
Midi Pyrénées
Energy-intensive chemical and metallurgical industries are located in the Pyrenees. The geography of this region allows its residents to engage not only in industry, but also in agriculture, since the mild and warm climate allows them to engage in the agricultural development of the region.
Toulouse, as the center of the region, plays a key role in its development. Not far from it is Airbus Commercial Aircraft, a well-known company in Europe, engaged in the assembly and production of aircraft parts.
Lorraine
Lorraine is a region of France, the name of which is now little used, now this region includes the regions of Franche-Comté, Vosges and Alsace. This picturesque area attracts thousands of tourists a year. Despite developed tourism, Lorraine remains the main metallurgical region of France.
Heavy industry is well developed in the region due to large concentrations of local coal, potash and rock salt, as well as iron ore. Metallurgical plants are located mainly on the banks of the rivers Sher, Fenn, Orne, Moselle (the cities of Longwy, Thionville, Aiange, etc.).
Alsace and Vosges are the main areas of the cotton industry in France (about half of all production). Large deliveries of wood and paper make the Vosges.
The capital of Alsace is Strasbourg, the largest city in the area, an industrial center on the Rhine River, a river port.
Franche-Comté specializes in the automotive industry (Peugeot factories in Sochaux-Montbeliard), the manufacture of precision mechanical products and watches (Besançon).
Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur
Compared to its neighbors, France has an extremely rich agricultural diversity. This diversity is the result of exposure to environmental conditions, especially soil and climate. Due to its position in the temperate zone, between two seas, France from all European countries represents the greatest diversity in cultivated household plants. Most of the agricultural land in France has fertile soils, valuable either for their natural qualities or that have become so as a result of their improvement during cultivation over many years.
Provence-Alpes-Cote d'Azur is a beautiful region, which is famous for its great contribution to the development of agriculture in France. Provence is the main supplier of flowers, grapes, rice and meat, especially beef. Locals also breed horses and sheep and produce dairy products (from here came the famous Alpine milk). It also collects fruits and berries for the manufacture of jams and wholesale.
Brittany
Brittany remains the leader in fishing and the main region of France for the supply of agricultural products. Oysters, squids, mussels, lobsters and crabs are what the region is really rich in, in addition to all kinds of fish.
About 50% of all pork and poultry meat in France comes from Brittany, in any supermarket you can find Breton products. Cauliflower (60% of French production) and artichokes (85%) are also available in many regions.
In addition to the agricultural sector, civilian and military shipbuilding are also developing in the region.
Normandy
Traditionally, the Norman economy is considered agriculture-oriented. In Upper Normandy, emphasis is placed on the cultivation of various cereals and cattle breeding.
Nevertheless, the Norman economy is more connected with the sea (fishing, sea transport, etc.).
About 60% of plantings of textile flax are located in Normandy. Also, this region is considered one of the best producers of apple cider and calvados.
The energy sector is very important in Normandy, where three nuclear power plants (Penly, Flamanville and Paluel) are concentrated.
New Aquitaine
In this case, New Aquitaine means three regions: Aquitaine, Limousin and Poitou Charentes. The region’s economy is based on several pillars: agriculture, viticulture, aircraft manufacturing, biotechnology and chemical engineering.
In New Aquitaine, agriculture is very diverse, and it is also extremely well developed: the region’s turnover of goods is about 9.4 billion euros each year (the first export region), it is also the first French region in terms of the number of well-known gastronomic labels (155 brands of products).
New Aquitaine ranks first in Europe for the production of foie gras (more than half of French production is concentrated in this region). Fishing is also well known in this area. Some of France’s best oysters come from Arcachon Bay and Cape Ferret.
The wine production center is located in New Aquitaine, which is one of the main wine-growing regions of France. Bordeaux wines, cognac and Armagnac that are well-known to all are produced in this territory.
As for cereals, the picture here is as follows: the region has a decisive place in the cultivation of wheat, corn and sunflowers. The small town of Saint-Genis-de-Sentonges produces the largest number of popcorn in France: 70% of the national production comes from its farms.
Speaking about fruits and vegetables, it should be noted that New Aquitaine remains the leader in this area: it is the first producer in France - corn growing is 90% of the national production, kiwi - 49%, asparagus - 30%, carrots - 30%, strawberries - 28%, string beans - 26%, etc.
In addition to agriculture, the New Aquitaine region has a developed forestry sector and logging. Here, not only wood is harvested and processed, but also paper, cardboard and furniture are produced.
Conclusion
Each region of France specializes in several areas at once, be it industry or agriculture. The agricultural and industrial areas of France are simply amazing for their productivity.