Boycott of French wine losing fizzle with public

Wine importers bet big on American consumers’ taste for French wine — before political differences over war in Iraq spilled into the economic realm.

Trade figures from the first quarter of the year show French wine imports increased more than 40 percent from 2002, to $218 million from $153 million, according to U.S. Census Bureau statistics released this week.

French cheese imports were up by an even greater percentage.

But most of those orders were made before France and the United States had a public falling-out over Iraq.

Since then, many Americans say they are less likely to buy French products.

More than 40 percent of Americans said they were less likely to buy French products as a result of that country’s lack of support for the U.S.-led war in Iraq, according to an April survey by KRC Research, a division of public relations firm Weber Shandwick.

And sales of top French labels have fallen almost 9 percent from a year ago, April figures from Chicago public relations firm Information Resources Inc. indicate.

“We believe we are going to have to step up our marketing efforts,” said Jacques Thebault, president of Sopexa for the Americas, the New York marketing agency for the Bordeaux Wine Council.

Mr. Thebault said the agency will work with restaurants and stores to promote wines, measures that may be necessary to counter lingering anti-French sentiment.

He said it is still difficult to fully evaluate the impact of consumer sentiment on purchasing patterns.

“We do expect a slowdown [in sales],” Mr. Thebault said. “It is probably a combination of the exchange rate and a short-term shift of consumer attitudes.”

The euro Monday reached a 41/2 year high versus the dollar, making products from the eurozone more expensive when purchased with dollars.

It will take some time to sort out the impact of the exchange rate, supply and consumer demand on prices, Mr. Thebault said.

So far, the supposed consumer boycott has not been universal.

Story Continues →