Winegrowers from Vaucluse demonstrated in front of a Lidl store to denounce the prices considered too low for bottles of Côtes du Rhône. By symbolically breaking bottles, they warn of the devaluation of their wine production.
Vaucluse wine growers demonstrated on Monday, November 4, in front of Lidl stores in Orange (Vaucluse) to denounce the prices of bottles of Côtes du Rhône. A similar operation was carried out in Bagnols-sur-Cèze (Gard). The demonstrators criticize the hard-discount brand for selling this wine with a protected designation of origin (PDO) at prices that are too low. The brand displays 1.99 euros per bottle, 1.39 euros for the second, as noted by La Provence.
In front of the Lidl in Orange, around thirty wine growers symbolically bought several bottles which they then broke in the supermarket parking lot. Their action is relayed in a video shared on social networks.
“The content and container are a disgrace. With what we are going through, it's a shame to put up with this. We have specifications for the Côtes du Rhône and the extraordinary appellation. We produce according to respectful codes, and we are not respected,” says a protester, emptying a bottle on the ground of the parking lot.
Vaucluse wine growers want to engage customers
This demonstration was organized at the call of two peasant unions, the FDSEA and the Young Farmers. The objective is to alert the public to the repercussions of these low prices on their activity. In addition to denouncing the devaluation of their products, the demonstrators intend to put pressure on distribution brands, while annual negotiations on prices with major retailers begin.
This movement takes place in a context of difficulties for the wine industry, marked by downward prices and foreign competition considered unfair. An intensification of actions is planned from November 15, with new mobilizations and blockages, as in Lot-et-Garonne, where the Rural Confederation is organizing.
