PARIS, France, Sept 7, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - French wine production this year is expected to fall 6 percent from 2025 after a summer of unprecedented heatwaves and drought, the agriculture ministry said on Monday, predicting the most paltry harvest for some 70 years.

France, the world's second-largest wine producer after Italy, is expected to produce less than 34 million hectolitres in 2026, according to estimates released by the agriculture ministry.

According to the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV), which tracks global wine production and consumption, the 2025 figure was already a historic low, marking the lowest production in France since 1957.

The decline expected in 2026, which is 17 percent below the average seen between 2021 and 2025, is due both to shrinking vineyards and lower yields caused by drought and summer heatwaves, according to the ministry's statistics service.

As of September 1, production was estimated at nearly 33.9 million hectolitres, compared with 35.9 million hectolitres last year. A hectolitre is the equivalent of 100 litres.

The service noted, however, significant differences between regions.

In Champagne, output is expected to be cut by half compared with both 2025 and the five-year average.

But in the southern region of Languedoc-Roussillon, the harvest is expected to rise 5 percent from the 2025 weak crop thanks to improved yields, although it would still remain 8 percent below the 2021-2025 average.

France last week announced more than one billion euros in emergency support for farmers, but agricultural groups said the package fell short of needs.