During a protest by winegrowers from southern France in Béziers (Hérault) on November 15, 2025. ALAIN TENDERO/DIVERGENCE
“The French wine sector is truly facing major difficulties. This is due to multiple factors since the Covid-19 pandemic,” said Jérôme Despey, a winegrower in southern Saint-Geniès-des-Mourgues and first vice president of FNSEA, the largest farmers’ union. Here are some of the reasons for the simmering anger among winegrowers, which erupted during a major protest by producers in the south of France on November 15 in Béziers.
Another small harvest amid climate change
In early August, the French Agriculture Ministry was still counting on a rebound in the country’s wine production for 2025. But the heatwave struck, and hopes for a good harvest evaporated. The grape yield is now estimated at 36.2 million hectoliters, comparable to the disastrous year of 2024. For some winegrowers in southern France, this makes it the third consecutive year of drought and heatwaves. For example, the Aude department saw its wine production drop from 3.9 million to 2 million hectoliters over this period. “In the southwest, this is the fifth consecutive small harvest. We have lost 1.5 to two harvests in five years,” said Joël Boueilh, a cooperative winegrower in Saint-Mont.
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