French law drives country’s first television wine channel into exile

Edonys has fallen foul of France's ban on promoting alcohol on television
You might think that French officials would have raised their glasses in celebration of a project to create the first Gallic television channel dedicated to wine.

Instead, they appear intent on driving the station into exile, possibly to Britain, after deciding that it will fall foul of the toughest laws on alcohol promotion outside the Muslim world.

Edonys, a private group which hopes to start broadcasting later this year, has been warned by France’s Higher Audiovisual Council that it will receive authorisation only if it drops plans for programmes featuring wine-tastings and expert discussions. The broadcasting authority deemed these illegal under a law that prohibits “all direct or indirect propaganda in favour of alcoholic drinks” on television.

However, the station is refusing to amend its schedule and executives are now looking for a base outside France. Britain, Luxembourg and Belgium are among the options.

“France is the world reference when it comes to wine and yet we are the only non-Muslim country where you cannot talk about wine on the television,” said Jean-Michel Peyronnet, an eminent wine journalist, who is among the founders of Edonys. “It’s not just surprising, it’s a scandal.”

It has been reported that Edonys may circumvent the law by broadcasting to France via satellite from Luxembourg, but Mr Peyronnet played down the suggestion.

He said that the station would instead target wine-lovers in Belgium and other francophone countries with looser regulations. He said that Edonys also intended to start broadcasting English-language programmes for the UK and Northern European countries next year. It is likely to be a pay channel available by cable or satellite.

“We want to have interactive wine-tastings where viewers give us their opinions . . . and have experts offering advice on what you should drink with such and such a dish,” Mr Peyronnet said. “But that is banned in France’s prohibitionist environment. You can only talk about wine in the most abstract way.”

The ban on promoting wine was introduced in 1991 legislation designed to reduce alcohol and cigarette consumption in France.

Wine nation

— After a rise in le binge drinking, wine advertisements are now banned online in France, while print and TV adverts cannot show people drinking alcohol

— In public health terms the legislation has been a success. The French consume an average of 11.6 litres of alcohol each, compared with 15.4 litres 20 years ago

— Winegrowers took to the streets of Bordeaux and Sancerre in 2008 after an amendment was proposed to outlaw free promotional drinks

— A government report this year said that universities should hold wine tastings to introduce young people to “moderate consumption”