Thriving French Whine Market

(Paris) Due to several reasons, such as overproduction, decreased exports, advertising restrictions, and changing drinking habits, the French wine making business is considered in crisis. Consequently, today French vintners wore black armbands while marching through Bordeaux, Avignon, Angers, Macon, Nantes, Tours and other cities in key wine making regions to protest and urge the government to bail out the industry.

Vintners say overproduction worldwide, and especially in France - which harvested a bumper crop of grapes this year - has glutted a market where French wines already face fierce competition from vintages from California, Chile and Australia.

In addition, wine consumption by the French people is down dramatically due to anti-alcohol campaigns.