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Summary of our market study
In France, the wine market is estimated at 30 billion euros.
The global wine market, valued at US$326.6 billion in 2020, has fallen by 10% on its 2019 valuation due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The market is recovering and should reach US$445 billion in 2027.
french wine production fluctuates due to weather conditions and external challenges.
Wine is an integral part of French culture and identity, and occupies an important place on the international scene.
changing preferences and challenges in the French wine market
The French wine market occupies a prominent position, both nationally and internationally, as it is deeply rooted in the country's culture and traditions.
The market is in structural decline, a trend that reflects broader changes in lifestyle and the evolution of wine from a staple of the daily diet to a product enjoyed on special occasions.
French consumers are drinking wine less frequently than in recent decades, the current average being one glass of wine a day, compared with 3.5 glasses in 1960.
Annual per capita wine consumption has fallen from around 128 liters in the 1960s to 35 or 40 liters.
Consumers now favor quality over quantity, opting for top-of-the-range selections.
This increased interest in quality is also reflected in the popularity of organic wines, which are gaining significant market share in both volume and value.
Geographically, French wine production is fairly widespread, with regions such as Occitanie and Nouvelle Aquitaine contributing significantly to overall volume.
The sparkling wine segment, in particular champagne, plays an important role, accounting for a substantial share of retail sales.
Wine distribution in France is mainly via supermarkets, which account for over half of sales, followed by direct sales in wineries, specialist stores and an increasingly important share of e-commerce platforms.
French wine market players
- The International Organization of Vine and Wine defines wine and sets the standards governing its production. As an intergovernmental organization, the OIV plays an important role in creating an international benchmark and ensuring the recognition of wine as a product intimately linked to culture and tradition.
- Comité National des Interprofessions des vins (CNIV) plays an essential role in providing market data, which are indispensable for understanding the dynamics and economics of the French wine market.
- Ministry of the Economy and Ministry of Agriculture: These government bodies are responsible for overseeing and developing policies relating to the wine sector in France.
- The Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques provides crucial data and indices, such as the producer price index for wine.
- Vignoblexport and La Revue du vin de France: These platforms offer information and analysis on exports, market structure and the performance of the French wine industry
- France Agrimer: this public institution supports wine producers and promotes the French wine market.
- INAO (Institut national de l'origine et de la qualité) is responsible for regulating agricultural products with a Protected Designation of Origin (PDO) or a Protected Geographical Indication (PGI).
- Vitisphère, Agreste, Agencebio, Les Grappes, Le Français.
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Summary and extracts
1 Market overview
1.1 Definition and scope of the study
Wine is the alcoholic drink resulting from the fermentation of grapes. Since 1973, the International Organisation of Vine and Wine specifies that "wine is exclusively the beverage resulting from the complete or partial alcoholic fermentation of fresh grapes, whether crushed or not, or of grape must". It is also stated that its alcoholic strength may not be less than 8.5% by volume.
Therefore, spirits and any drink obtained from the fermentation of fruits other than grapes are excluded from this study.
There are several types of wine, distinguished in particular by color (red, white, rosé), texture (still, sparkling, naturally sweet) and grape variety (type of vine). These distinctions allow us to identify several segments of the wine market, each of which is the subject of a separate study. Studies on the red wine market, the white wine market, the sparkling wine market and the organic wine market are available.
In addition, French wines are divided into two categories: wines without geographical indication (VSIG) which correspond to the former table wines and wines with geographical indication (GI). The production of wines with GI is strictly regulated and is itself divided into two groups: wines with protected designation of origin (PDO) and wines with protected geographical indication (PGI). [Ministry of Economy]
The French wine market is renowned for the breadth of its range but also for the quality of its wines. French wine has a privileged status on the international scene as well as within the national territory. Indeed, the French associate it with values of tradition and conviviality and give it a significant place in French culture. However, the wine market in France is characterized by a structural decline in consumption. This decline is symptomatic of a transformation in lifestyles and consumption patterns and the shift from daily consumption and a "wine-food" function to a more cultural and occasional product.
In addition, the wine market is facing several external challenges and hazards, in particular the Brexit, the US surtax on wine or the coronavirus crisis, which are all events that threaten the industry. Production is also dependent on weather conditions, which explains, for example, the 14.1% drop in production in 2019. However, this decline is not representative of a structural trend, as evidenced by the production increase in 2020 of 10.8%. [Agreste]
List of charts presented in this market study
- Size of the global wine market
- Size of the French wine market
- Wine exports
- Main destinations for French wine exports (in value)
- Wine imports
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Latest news
Alexis Leven-Mentzelopoulos, heir to Château Margaux - 13/11/2023
- Château Margaux is a family estate among the first great growths of the 1855 classification.
- Alexis Leven-Mentzelopoulos succeeds his mother Corinne Mentzelopoulos, who was at the helm of the estate for 43 years.
- Alexis' father André Mentzelopoulos, owner of the Félix Potin retail chain, bought Château Margaux from the Ginestet family of Bordeaux.
- Bordeaux grands crus are considered luxury goods.
Laboratoires Dubernet: Terra Mea invents a method for analyzing the microbiota of agricultural soils - 04/09/2023
- Terra Mea is a young company created by the Laboratoires Dubernet group, specialized in oenology.
- Terra Mea has developed a technology for counting cells in the soil
- Terra Mea is able to assess carbon sequestration in the soil, an important indicator of soil health.
- In the Languedoc region, alcoholic degrees have risen from 12.5 to 14.5 in 20 years.
- Terra Mea has a national soil mapping project involving the measurement of 20,000 points throughout France.
- Terra Mea expects sales of 1.5 million euros this year, with a target of 5 million by 2024.
- Terra Mea currently employs six agricultural engineers, and plans to expand its team to around twenty next year.
- The Laboratoires Dubernet group employs 75 people and has sales of 6 million euros.
Grands Chais de France in Alsace: Riesling in the background - 21/06/2023
- Grands Chais de France (GCF) group founded: 1979 in Alsace, France
- Main brand: J.P. Chenet
- France's leading exporter of wines and spirits
- Sales: 1.1 billion euros in 2019
- Brands: J.P. Chenet, Grand Sud, Calvet, Jelzin vodka
- France's leading private winemaker with over 3,000 hectares of vineyards
- Nearly 80% of sales generated abroad, in over 173 countries
- Workforce: 3,000 employees
- Annual quantity of wine produced: 1.5 million hectolitres, either in-house or under contract to French winemakers
The Joseph Drouhin empire. - 06/06/2023
- Company name: Maison Joseph Drouhin
- Location: Beaune (Côte-d'Or) and Chablis (Yonne)
- New purchases: Vineyards in Saint-Véran (Château de Chasselas) and Saint-Romain en Bourgogne (domaine Rapet)
Joseph Drouhin buys two estates in Burgundy. - 01/06/2023
- Joseph Drouhin acquires two estates in Burgundy: Château de Chasselas in Saint-Véran, Saône-et-Loire and Domaine Rapet in Saint-Romain, Côte-d'Or.
Wine: for its 30th anniversary, Le Hameau Duboeuf creates an immersive show - 22/05/2023
- Hameau Duboeuf celebrates its 30th anniversary.
- Maison Georges Duboeuf is the wine producer associated with the theme park.
- The theme park boasts 3,000 collector's items from the region's wine-growing heritage.
- The exhibition area covers 30,000 square meters.
- Annual visitor numbers are 80,000.
- For the past three years, Hameau Duboeuf has been investing in immersive attractions (explore games).
- 70% of visitors are French.
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