Survey Finds 73% of Southern Rhône Winegrowers Have Adapted Vineyards to Climate Change

Nearly three out of four winegrowers who responded to a survey in France’s Southern Rhône Valley said they had already adopted at least one measure to adapt their vineyards to climate change, underscoring how heat, drought and weather risk are reshaping work in one of the country’s most important wine regions.

According to WineNews, which reported findings from a survey conducted by the Institut Rhodanien, 72 of 98 growers, or 73%, said they had put in place at least one adaptation measure. The remaining 27% said they had not adopted any. The questionnaire was completed between July 2025 and February 2026.

The results point to changes not only in vineyard technique, but also in harvest timing, plant material, insurance decisions and capital spending. They also suggest that adaptation is no longer a marginal issue for producers in the Southern Rhône, where warmer conditions have forced growers to adjust both field practices and financial risk management.

Among the most common responses, 70% of those surveyed said they were using later pruning. Another 64% said they were adapting grape varieties or rootstocks. Early-morning or night harvesting was reported by 63%, the same share that said they had permanent cover crops in place. A further 54% said they were bringing harvest dates forward, while 50% said they were irrigating at least one vineyard parcel.

Other vineyard measures were also reported, though at lower rates. Half of respondents said they were using green manure, and 50% reported canopy management with a drooping growth habit. Another 32% said they were adding larger amounts of organic matter. Among growers who had adopted adaptation measures, 21% said they had turned to hail cannons, reflecting concern over increasingly volatile weather.

The survey also showed that growers are using business and investment tools, not just agronomic changes, to deal with climate-related risk. Insurance was used by 39% of respondents, and another 39% said they were diversifying production. Solar panels were reported by 28%, while 14% said they had moved land or production activity.

Some practices remained limited in the region. Nets used for protection from hail, frost or sun were described as largely absent. Regenerative hydrology, biofuels and robotics each stood at 7%, suggesting that more capital-intensive or less established responses are still uncommon.

The figures do not show how much growers have spent, what the cost per acre or hectare may be, how yields have changed, or whether the measures have produced a financial return. That leaves open key questions about how far adaptation is affecting profitability and how much more investment may be needed in coming years.

The findings should also be read with caution. The survey was voluntary and does not necessarily represent all winegrowers in the Southern Rhône Valley. The underlying report was cited by WineNews, but full primary survey material was not publicly available for independent review during verification.

Even with those limits, the data offer a detailed snapshot of how producers in a major French wine region are responding to climate pressure. The range of measures reported, from later pruning and new rootstocks to irrigation, insurance and solar panels, shows that the response is spreading across both farming decisions and balance sheets as climate adaptation becomes part of normal vineyard management.