Wine producers in France are now allowed to use vertical hail nets. After three years of experiments in Burgundy, the INAO has decided that the nets do not affect the maturity or quality of the grapes. The background is that in recent year hail has caused extensive damage and lost harvests in several wine regions.
However, the nets will cost quite a lot, 20,000 euros per hectare has been mentioned. The question is how many will be tempted to invest in this protection and how the landscape will change.
Our guess is that, after all, it will not be so widespread. Perhaps some producers in Chablis and Burgundy will protect their most valuable vineyards. Mendoza in Argentina is regularly hit by hailstorms and has been using hail nets for protection for a long time.
Read more: reussir.fr
