October 23, 2014

French winemakers who are already struggling financially are facing additional costs as the fungal disease, esca has damaged 13% of the country’s vines so far this year at a cost of €1 billion (US$1.26 billion).  The airborne disease stunts vines, causes them to wither and die quickly, and has only one known cure – sodium arsonite, which is banned for being a carcinogen – leaving growers no choice but to rip out infected vines, burn them, and replant.  The resurgence of the disease was discovered in the Loire Valley in mid-August and has since spread to other European countries and California, leading French winemakers to request that the EU and international governments declare esca an international emergency and provide funding to fight the disease.  Chemicals and pesticides have proven ineffectual and French authorities are assisting winegrowers finance the replanting of their vines as producers do not want to pass on the associated costs to consumers causing them to buy foreign wines.  So far the only process to curb the fungus has been ‘reconstitution’, or grafting aphid-resistant American vines onto the French.  Michel Badier, the head of the Loir-et-Cher chamber of agriculture believes that the fungus will affect 15% of France’s €13 billion (US$16.44 billion) industry before it is contained.

Read the article

To receive relevant news stories with summaries provided by GAI Research & Insight, subscribe to Global AgDevelopments, our free weekly enhanced eNews service