France - Recent

French vineyards have been using innovative and sustainable practices to cope with challenges posed by climate change.

Jean Pierre Riviere, a farmer in Beaujolais, a wine region in eastern France, saw the first effects of climate change on his vineyards 20 years ago. The buds on the vines burst earlier than usual, fooled by a warm spell in March. The yield that year was low and the quality of the grapes suffered.

The French farmer said he hoped the disaster would be a one-time event, but it has since become an almost annual occurrence.

Determined to preserve the vineyard he inherited from his father, Jean Pierre said he has tried to adapt to climate change through some experimental practices.

As the climate changes, farmers are seeking measures to manage the water in the soil more carefully and to ensure that the grapes do not ripen too early, before the vines have converted the bright Mediterranean sunshine into sugars.

Despite its international reputation, Beaujolais remains relatively affordable compared with France's other traditional powerhouse wine regions. And it has also emerged as a place of experimentation where new techniques can be tested.

David Ratignier, vice-president of the Beaujolais villages, said the farmers' efforts are already starting to bear fruit.

France has reclaimed the title of the world's largest wine producing country in 2023 after a 9-year hiatus, according to the International Organization of Vine and Wine (OIV)'s Worldwide Wine Production report. And according to the official report from the French Ministry of Agriculture and Food, the Burgundy-Beaujolais region was expected to see a 22 percent increase in wine production in 2023 compared with the average of the previous five years.

Shotlist:
Beaujolais, France - Recent:
1. Aerial shot of vineyard;
2. Various of Riviere checking plants;
3. SOUNDBITE (French, dubbed in English) Jean Pierre Riviere, French Farmer (starting with shot 2):
"In 2003, we were especially disturbed because we didn't really understand. I mean, we thought it was an exceptional event.";
4. Aerial shots of vineyard;
5. Riviere on field;
6. SOUNDBITE (French, dubbed in English) Jean Pierre Riviere, French Farmer (partially overlaid with shot 7):
"We are working mainly on modifying the height of vegetation at our research organization. We're also working on all the rootstocks. We're very hopeful because the vine is a grafted plant, the above-ground part is European plants, and the underground part is American plants, which have been grafted precisely to resist filoxera since around 1870. We're working on these different families to find rootstocks that are more resistant to drought because they're able to develop strong roots and go deep underground to find moisture and be less sensitive to drought."
[SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE];
7. Various of Riviere checking plants
[SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE];
8. Time-lapse footage of vineyard;
9. Riviere picking fruits;
10. Various of plants;
11. Sign of Beaujolais;
12. Aerial shot of vineyard;
13. Ratignier entering cellar;
14. SOUNDBITE (French, dubbed in English) David Ratignier, Vice-President of the Beaujolais Villages (ending with shot 15):
"Our soils are very poor, so we've added a lot of organic matter to increase water storage in the soil in summer, so it works. We can see the results. We can see vines suffering less from drought in 2022, between 2020 and 2022. We made a lot of these inputs and in 2022, which was also a very dry year, we still had good results on that.";
15. Various of Ratignier opening wine.

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