Since June 5, French winegrowers have been able to distil their unsold wine due to the health crisis. A relief for Roland Coustal, an independent Aude winemaker in Le Minervois.
With confinement, the Covid-19 health crisis has turned into an economic crisis. If businesses, shops, hotels and restaurants are among the most affected, producers also deplore losses. “Everything stopped at the beginning of March with the announcement of the closure of European borders and containment”said Roland Coustal, an independent Aude winegrower in Le Minervois, in Free lunchMay 18.
Of the 80% of its production marketed in bottles, 50% is usually intended for export. “We sell the other half to wine merchants and restaurants and in salons. They are all closed or have been canceledhe reported again. For example, we recorded a loss of €30,000 with the absence of the Toulouse, Brison-Saint-Innocent and Paris shows”. According to our colleagues, the winegrower’s loss of turnover amounted to -59% in March, -54% in April and -60% in May.
An exceptional measure financed by European public funds
Nevertheless, for Roland Coustal and his peers, hope is reborn. From June 5 and until October 15, an exceptional measure financed by European public funds came into force to allow French winegrowers to distil their unsold wine due to the drastic drop in consumption. Objective: to use their productions to manufacture bioethanol or hydroalcoholic gel.
“This will allow me, indeed, to empty the cellar, to empty the vats, to be able to bring in the next harvest and to bring cash within four months.is considering Roland Coustal with franceinfo. Which will allow me to shoot until the end of the year, and to compensate for the loss I had on bottle sales, due to the coronavirus crisis.. In total, it is estimated that 2 million hectoliters of wine have not been sold since the containment was put in place.
“We are winegrowers above all to make wine”
“This wine will be bought back on the basis of 78 euros per hectolitre, or 78 cents per liter of winespecifies the winemaker to our colleagues. The normal price is around 85 cents per litre. It’s still quite rewarding.”. Winegrowers who wish to take advantage of this measure have until June 19 to subscribe to the volume to be distilled. Despite the relief caused by this announcement, Roland Coustal is not happy to get rid of his production. “We are winegrowers above all to make wine!”he points out to franceinfo.
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