Labor abuses, tariffs cloud the sector

It’ll come as no surprise that sales of Champagne peak in the run-up to Christmas and New Year, with French fizz the drink of choice for many households in the festive season.

Every year, around 120,000 seasonal workers come to work in France, harvesting grapes across 34,000 hectares of vines. The harvest only lasts a couple of weeks, making it a frenetic time for the sector.

A darker side to the industry has emerged when it comes to that work, however, with recent reports shining a light on the exploitation and mistreatment of champagne grape pickers who are often foreign and undocumented migrants.

During an extreme heatwave in the late summer of 2023, at least four migrant grape pickers, or “vendangeurs” as they’re known, died in what has since been dubbed the “harvest of shame.”

The case highlighted broader substandard working and housing conditions for pickers, including excessive working hours, low pay, a lack of safety equipment and protocols, such as adequate hydration and breaks.

The scandal around working conditions and welfare comes at a difficult time for the wider industry — 2024’s harvest saw lower yields than average due to spring frosts and a rainy period during the summer that only subsided toward the end of the growing season, just about “saving” the harvest.

The 2025 harvest fared better and was lauded for its high-quality vintage, thanks to clement weather conditions.

Nonetheless, this year’s sales, which will be released in January, are likely to be further dented by U.S. import tariffs on goods from the EU, which caused Champagne shipments to the U.S. to slump.