Around 100 members of a union representing French grape growers began their blockade of the A9 motorway at noon on Tuesday.
They parked their tractors across a busy toll booth in Boulou, which is close to the Spanish border, creating huge traffic jams in both directions.
The growers seized a lorry carrying Spanish white wines destined for the Côte d’Or and emptied the contents onto the road.
The protest has continued into Wednesday, as the growers warned they would block all freight for an ‘indefinite period’ until their demands are met.
The union members said they want to ‘achieve decent prices, in particular a 20% increase on our wines, or 20 cents per bottle’.
They felt they were left with no choice but to ‘escalate their anger’ by blocking freight at the borders and at distribution hubs.
Various chapters of the Rural Coordination union organised the protest.
After intercepting the lorry containing Spanish white wines, Arnaud Poitrine, general secretary of the Rural Coordination of Hérault, told reporters: ‘These are wines at €30 per hectolitre intended for a company that exclusively produces Crémants de Bourgogne. We have strong suspicions.’
The blockade has caused major disruptions in both France and Spain. ‘We are already being told of 40km of traffic jams with trucks being stored on the motorway,’ added Poitrine.
This is the latest in a string of protests from furious French grape growers, who say they are being squeezed by large retailers and merchants.
On Wednesday morning, Agriculture Minister Annie Genevard warned that ‘blocking the road is not acceptable’, but her comments enraged the growers further.
‘The minister is adding fuel to the fire by indicating that we are seeking consideration through these actions, when all we are waiting for is [higher] prices,’ said Poitrine.
‘The latest negotiations with the marketers of merchants and large retailers present us with 7% reductions on wine prices, even asking that we come and put them on the shelves. That is what is unacceptable, not our blockage!’
Union members are planning blockades of additional large distribution centres across the Languedoc-Roussillon region in the coming days.
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