Cognac aims to outlaw use of groundwater for irrigating vineyards

s intense heat sweeps across the vineyards of France this month, the standing committee of the Cognac marketing bureau BNIC has unanimously voted on the issue of water usage in a very strictly defined text. Adopted on Wednesday 13 July after months of consultation between the trade and winegrowers, the decision confirms the probable need for irrigation in Cognac vineyards in the future, but without taking a litre of water from the water table. Although water stress lowers crop yields, the sustainable solution for the Cognac industry is not to compete with other users – particularly with usages that are vital to the local population, unlike wine grapes – but rather to develop alternative resources, enhancing self-sufficiency for the Charente brandy.

“Our objective is not to create tensions, but to think ahead and devise smart strategies for resource management”, explains Anthony Brun, chairman of the Cognac appellation winegrowers’ organisation UGVC. The industry can also consider “harvesting rainwater from our rooftops, treating wastewater, use of resistant vines and new vineyard management techniques, to name a few. Many solutions are already in use in countries like Israel and Spain”, adds Christophe Véral, chairman of the BNIC. Halfway through his term, the distiller from Sainte Sévère (Charente) also commented that the Cognac industry was moving towards long-term sustainability, with the requisite consultations with the various catchment areas.