Champagne grappling with the coronavirus, an unprecedented crisis

Audio 7:30 p.m.

In 2020, an unprecedented crisis in Champagne. RFI / Agnieszka Kumor

By: Agnieszka Kumor

Twelve years after that of 2008, Champagne is going through a new crisis. 100 million bottles of champagne could remain in cellars in 2020 due to the pandemic, or 1.7 billion euros in losses. How to preserve the economic fabric and the value of wines with such a collapse in sales?

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In order to avoid a disaster, the Champagne Committee, which brings together winegrowers and houses, has implemented a series of measures. This notably involves postponing the payment of the 2019 harvest, thus offering an oxygen bubble to buyers of the grapes. At the same time, the marketing of bottles under development has been postponed. The idea is to avoid falling sales prices. But after… ? Should the new harvest be reduced? And will consumers quickly regain confidence after the reopening of places of life around the world? The industry is wondering…

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