Of that, 6000ha was expected to be sown in oilseed rape for the growing biofuel industry. Last year about 200,000ha was cropped.
The foundation's chief executive, Nick Pyke, said the regions where the new crops were being grown were in the southern North Island, North Otago and Southland as well as smaller areas in the Canterbury foothills around Darfield and Sheffield.
Most of the new area was previously sheep and beef grazing and cropping it would further erode the meat and wool industries.
An estimated 50 South Island sheep and beef farms are being converted to dairying in time for next spring.
Mr Pyke said he understood why farmers were spreading their risk and responding to low meat and wool prices by growing crops, but he urged farmers to tap into his arable research organisation's extensive knowledge bank and services.
Record grain prices were an attraction, but farmers were also using crops to recover from drought and as part of the pasture-renewal cycle, he said.
"Grain prices have reached a record high this year, which is resulting in many sheep farmers turning to cropping".
"Reducing risk through diversification is on the increase over a range of farming practices - which would seem wise given the current market trends,'' he said.