For the last few years, the French wine sector has suffered a drop of its market share on the global wine market. The French government is concerned about this loss and is looking for further solutions to clamp down on its erosion. The emergence and development of “New World” producers such as United States, Argentina, Chile, Australia, South Africa, China, etc as well as “Old World” producers such as Italy, Spain and Germany forces France to reposition itself.

In 2004, the French Minister of Agriculture along with the key players of the wine sector tried to initiate a reform. The main purpose was to simplify the French wine supply to provide a clearer insight for the consumers. Lots of discussions were taking place between “traditionalists” and “modernists” winemakers. Given the strong attachment to tradition the French reform came to a deadlock.

In 2006, the European Commission proposed an in-depth reform of the EU wine market in order to increase competitiveness of European wines. The main problem was the overproduction brought by mass methods which generated large volumes of low quality wines. This reform will be discussed further in this report.

Wine is a complex product and French producers are strongly attached to their tradition. It is both perceived as a sensory experience and a commodity product to the consumer. The resulting duality could be described as below:

“Wine production is both art and science, a blend of individual creativity and innovative technology. But wine production is also business, with economic factors driving manufacturing practices. To be successful in the modern marketplace, a winemaker must integrate the artistic and economic aspects of wine production, and possess a solid understanding of the intrinsic and extrinsic factors that underlie purchase motivation."

Bisson, Linda F. (2002, August 8). The Present and Future of the International Wine Industry. Retrieved April 4,

2016, from http://www.nature.com/nature/journal/v418/n6898/full/nature01018.html