Champagne Harvest: Industry Under Pressure To Preserve Its Reputation

Pierry (France): Recruiting and accommodating 120,000 seasonal workers to harvest 34,000 hectares of vines by hand: the 2024 campaign is a challenge for the Champagne industry, which is mobilising to protect its reputation, shaken in 2023 by the closure of unfit accommodation and the deaths of four grape-pickers. 

General Secretary of the CGT Champagne, José Blanco said, "The big problem with champagne is accommodation. As long as we don't have decent accommodation, we won't be able to welcome workers in good conditions. That's the bulk of the champagne. A lot of work was done last year, and that's what we're criticising."

"There have been improvements, but there are still problems. There are still camps in the woods. The problem is that many winegrowers have withdrawn from the idea of providing accommodation. Some because they say the standards are a bit too high, others because they don't want to. Because when you go to the villages, the old grape-houses that parents or grandparents built for the grape-pickers are now bed and breakfasts or Airbnb. So there are still premises that can be rehabilitated," Blanco said.