French Farmers Pivot to Olive Groves, Battling Cognac Crisis and Climate Change

Charente farmers are about to conjugate their sufferings in the past. They have opted for olive cultivation, a nice diversification to curb the Cognac crisis and poor cereal yields, reports Francebleu. In Fouquebrune, about fifteen kilometers from Angoulême, the President of the Angoulême Chamber of Agriculture, Laëtitia Plumat, is investing in this cultivation: she planted 3,000 plants on an area of two hectares last October, between the vineyard, the alfalfa field and the truffle oaks. She will make the first harvest in two and a half years.

Why olive cultivation? "It’s a plant that requires 500 millimeters of water," explains Laëtitia Primat, the first olive grower in Charente. She adds: "If we have a little bit of water, it’s better because it secures the quality of the olive in August. And then it’s a plant that resists high temperatures and, with global warming, it’s perfect."

The olive oil sector is beginning to be structured, the market being immense. Olive trees from Tunisia, Morocco, and Spain are imported by the company Oliv’ Green, based in Carcassonne. Many farmers also want to diversify. They are turning to Charente nurseries. The ambition is to soon build the first olive oil mill in France in the South-Charente.

"We quickly realized that there was no sector in France, as we can find in Spain, Morocco or Tunisia," acknowledges Yannick Combescot, manager of the Oliv’Green company. And he adds: "So we have been working on this project. We have reached about 450 hectares of plantations (in France). We are still advancing with a big prospect from 2026".