| French schools should teach young people how to appreciate wine, a group of parliamentarians said in a report on Thursday, calling for an education campaign to help the ailing sector, reports www.reuters.com. "To hold a forceful position in the world, French wine must first assume a strong position at home," the report said, calling for education programmes to inform young people about the origins, history and characteristics of French wines.
French winemakers have suffered from a decline in exports and a fall in consumption at home, where 92 percent of under-25s say they prefer other drinks, the report said. "Learning about healthy living starts from childhood and primary school," said the report, compiled by Philippe-Armand Martin and Gerard Voisin, deputies from the ruling UMP party.
The wine industry, a cornerstone of French life that employs about 75,000 people, has suffered as the country has become more health conscious. Consumption per head has dropped to about 55 litres per year, from 100 litres in 1970, the report says.
Adding to the pressure, New World countries have been increasing their global market share, although France and Italy remain the world's top producers.
The authors said drinking wine in moderation could have health benefits, citing a study saying that two to four glasses a day reduced a man's risk of cancer by 20 percent.
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We do not subscribe to this view. It reeks of lobbyist approach and is reminiscent of the US cigarette manufacturing companies pushing sales to Asia and women since they found their own market saturating.
Undoubtedly, wine is good for health when taken in moderation (2 glasses). But four glasses a day is too much and to suggest that someone should drink 4 glasses a day to reduce the chance of cancer by 20% is preposterous.
One sympathises with the French for the predicament, though. They themselves are to blame for the complex appellation systems, a rather laid-back marketing attitude and an unbridled production in a market that does not exist. To teach young children about the benefits of wine would be counterproductive. When their government blames that 45000 people die on roads every year due to wine and alcohol and is trying to clamp down the consumption, it does not make sense to indulge in this exercise that could have dangerous side effects. -Editor |
