France asks for EU help to destroy 'unprofitable' Bordeaux vines
The French government is appealing to the European Commission for €120 million in financial aid to destroy 30,000 hectares of French vineyards, mostly in the Bordeaux region. The sector has seen a significant drop in both domestic and overseas sales, stemming in part from changing drinking habits.
With Bordeaux wines selling less in recent years, winegrowers have been forced to uproot vines to maintain sales costs and avoid overproduction.
The habit of drinking wine with the daily meal has fallen by 70 percent in the last 60 years, according to the French Observatory of Drugs and Addictive Tendencies (OFDT).
French people on average drink 40 litres per inhabitant, per year, compared to 120 litres of wine in the 1960s.
This trend has accelerated in the last three years, particularly for red wine. France Agrimer – a public body dedicated to agricultural development – says they have noted 15 percent fewer sales in supermarket chains in this period.
To deal with the crisis, the French government has submitted a plan to the European Commission to destroy around 30,000 of the 800,000 hectares of French vineyards, at an estimated cost of €120 million.
Volunteers winegrowers would receive €4,000 per hectare of permanently removed vines, just enough to cover the cost – and they must promise not to replant anything.
Struggling French winemakers may have to destroy their vintage cellars to survive
Drastic solution
(with AFP)
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