French Government Launches €130 Million Vine Removal Program for Struggling Winegrowers

The French government has opened applications for its new vine removal plan, offering winegrowers €4,000 per hectare to permanently uproot their vineyards. The program, which could affect up to 32,500 hectares of vines, was launched online this Friday morning. It is backed by a €130 million budget, approved earlier this week as part of the 2026 national budget. The plan is designed to help struggling wine producers facing economic hardship and a lack of successors, and comes ahead of the annual Paris Agricultural Show later this month.

The scheme is open for one month, until noon on March 6. Eligible applicants must have an active vineyard registration (CVI), a valid business identification number (SIRET), and must have filed at least one harvest declaration in the past three years. Illegal plantings and abandoned plots are excluded. Vineyards undergoing liquidation proceedings are also ineligible.

Priority will be given to growers seeking to exit the industry entirely by removing all their vines. According to a FranceAgriMer survey at the end of 2025, about 20% of the 34,400 hectares identified for removal were from such full-exit requests. Partial removals are allowed only for plots older than ten years and do not include Chardonnay vines.

Once removed under this program, vineyards lose all replanting rights. Beneficiaries cannot apply for new planting authorizations for ten years. This rule follows the precedent set by the 2024 removal campaign, which saw 25,500 hectares uprooted with €120 million in national funds linked to the Ukraine war.

There are strict penalties for non-compliance. If a grower fails to remove at least 80% of the committed area, they will lose all removal payments and be barred from receiving European wine sector aid for six years. This measure aims to prevent applicants from inflating their requests in anticipation of possible budget shortfalls and proportional reductions.

The plan applies nationwide with uniform conditions and payment rates. However, in the Cognac region, local authorities have introduced an additional €6,000 per hectare bonus for eligible grape varieties used in Cognac production. This brings total aid there to €10,000 per hectare, funded by a mandatory industry levy after European compensation failed to materialize following Chinese tariffs on French spirits.

The sector is still waiting for final approval from the European Union for both the regulatory framework and the specific French program details. The EU’s “wine package” regulation is expected to take effect by late February or early March. Meanwhile, French authorities are pressing Brussels to release an additional €80 million from crisis reserves to support wine distillation.

Industry groups say time is running out. The main farmers’ union FNSEA has called on European Agriculture Commissioner Christophe Hansen to act quickly, warning that further delays are unacceptable given the urgent needs of winegrowers facing economic dead ends or unable to find successors.

In addition to vine removal aid, the government plans further measures in 2026 to help cooperative wineries restructure and revise agricultural laws governing production costs and commercial negotiations. These steps aim to stabilize a sector hit hard by falling demand, overproduction, and international trade disputes.