Tag: consumption

French wine production falls to lowest level since 1950s


Wine consumption in France reaches lowest point since 1961

The French wine industry endured one of its most challenging years in recent memory in 2024, marked by a dramatic drop in production, persistent decline in domestic consumption, and an increasingly volatile export landscape. According to the annual report published June 6, 2025, by Vinetur, the sector suffered a 23% decrease in wine output compared to 2023, producing only 37 million hectoliters — the lowest volume since the 1950s.

This collapse was driven by severe climatic conditions that impacted nearly all major wine regions. Persistent spring rains, late frosts, and an aggressive spread of mildew decimated yields. Key producing areas such as Charentes, Jura, and the Loire Valley reported losses exceeding 30%. Even Champagne and Bordeaux experienced double-digit declines. The downturn in volumes was mirrored by a 21.7% fall in the total production value, as per INSEE estimates [ . . . ]

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‘Quoi, just two glasses?’ French urged to cut down on their drinking

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France on Monday launched a national campaign to encourage the wine-loving French to cut down on their drinking after a study showed that a quarter of them over-consume. But many still feel that “a nice meal can’t be enjoyed without a good wine”.

France has one of the highest alcohol consumption rates in Europe, with the country trailing behind only Estonia, Lithuania and the Czech Republic in the quantities of alcohol it drinks, according to the World Health Organization. This drinking culture – largely attributed to wine, which represents 58 percentof France’s total alcohol consumption – on Monday prompted the public health agency and the National Institute of Cancer (INCa) to launch a national campaign, with recommendations for the maximum daily intake of alcohol.

I’ve never seen, to my knowledge – unfortunately, perhaps – a youngster leaving a nightclub drunk because they drank Côtes-du-Rhône, Crozes-Hermitage or Costières-de-Nîmes.

“For your health, alcohol should be limited to a maximum of two glasses per day, and not every day either,” they wrote, a limit that 24 percent of French adults regularly surpass. Alcohol is the second-biggest cause for preventable deaths in France after tobacco, killing some 41,000 people each year.

Forty-year-old Caroline from Paris, who did not want to give her real name, said that she grew up “literally swimming in wine”.

“In my family, our meals together have always been extremely important, and there has always been wine on the table.” Continue reading “‘Quoi, just two glasses?’ French urged to cut down on their drinking” →