Employees at firm that supplied grape-pickers for champagne on trial for human trafficking
The employees of the firm supplying grape pickers for the champagne harvest in 2023 were charged with human trafficking and exploiting seasonal workers, submitting vulnerable people to undignified housing conditions, and employing foreign nationals without authorisation The firm itself was also on trial for moral responsibility in the case.
The case, being heard at the criminal court of Châlons-en-Champagne in north-east France, has become known in France as 'the grape harvest of shame'.
A police investigation found that a total of 57 men and women, mostly from west African countries and many of them undocumented, were allegedly held in fetid housing. They were allegedly forced to work in conditions likened to slavery while hand-picking grapes in Champagne's picturesque vineyards, in a region recognised as a Unesco world heritage site.
The case came to light when residents in the small village of Nesle-le-Repons called police to complain about noise and activity in a derelict house during the September 2023 grape harvest.
A labour inspectorate found what it said in a report were 'disgusting' and 'dilapidated' living conditions at the house.
Grape-pickers were allegedly forced to sleep on what they described as stinking inflatable mattresses in a house without proper flooring, walls or windows, amid dangerous electrical wiring and rusty bed frames. There was no adequate water supply, washing facilities or sanitation and only three blocked and unusable toilets.
The workers, from countries including Mali, Mauritania, Ivory Coast and Senegal, were allegedly given too little food – either rice or sandwiches that were rotting. They were said to be transported to vineyards crammed into the back of vans, standing up, with no seats or windows. Some told investigators they worked for 10 hours with only a 30-minute break and were threatened if they wanted to rest or drink water.
They are believed to have been hired from areas in northern Paris where refugees and undocumented people often sleep rough or in tents and were driven to the Champagne region with the promise of work.
The state prosecutor said the housing in the Champagne area included 'worn and dirty sanitation facilities', outdoor kitchen and living areas that were unprotected from the weather, and bedding strewn on the floor.
Two of the former workers told local French media that they still cried when thinking about the conditions they experienced. Maxime Cessieux, a lawyer for the workers, said the accused had 'a total contempt' and disrespect for 'human dignity'.
A lawyer for one of the accused employees told the Nouvel Obs he had only been involved in initial recruitment, and had had nothing to do with housing or work conditions.
The CGT trade union said there must be an end to exploitation of seasonal workers in vineyards.
In a sign that the case was being taken seriously by the industry, the Champagne Committee, which represents 16,200 winemakers, 130 cooperatives and 370 champagne houses, took part in the trial as a civil party – a first for legal proceedings concerning the living conditions of seasonal workers.
The committee is 'firmly opposed to these unacceptable practices', its director, Charles Goemaere, said in a statement in March.
A wine cooperative in the Marne was also on trial for moral responsibility in using illegal labour.
Every year, about 120,000 seasonal workers are brought into the Champagne region to handpick grapes grown across 34,000 hectares (84,000 acres) and used to make the sparkling alcoholic drink.
But the plight of seasonal workers has sometimes cast a shadow over champagne's reputation. In 2023, four grape-pickers died, believed to have suffered sunstroke after working in scorching heat. During the 2018 champagne harvest, dozens of workers, including many from Afghanistan, were discovered housed in fetid conditions. Two members of a firm providing labour to the wine industry were found guilty of human trafficking and given prison sentences.
David Desgranges, vice-president of the Consortium Contre l'Esclavage Moderne (Committee Against Modern Slavery), told Agence France-Presse: 'The public should be made aware of the extent of human trafficking in the agricultural sector, and producers should know that they may face legal action.'
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At one point, a naval vessel sped towards the dinghy as it appeared to struggle in choppy waters. But once it seemed safe, the French boat turned back and left it on its way. The dinghy was one of six boats carrying 400 migrants that arrived in England that day. At about 5am on Wednesday, we watched on as a boat overloaded with migrants sailed from Gravelines beach – around 12 miles west of Dunkirk – where ten gendarmes stood idly by (pictured) French police say their hands are tied by maritime law, which means they are not allowed to intercept boats once they are in the water for safety reasons. On Wednesday morning another tactic was on display. While migrants gather at designated beachheads, smugglers launch their dinghies from a secret location elsewhere on the coast without passengers. When they get to the assembly points, the migrants wade into the sea and clamber on to the vessels – because once they are in the water the police do not intervene. Mamand said he had up to four pick-up spots around Dunkirk. One gendarme at Gravelines on Wednesday told us that he had been on patrol in town when three colleagues on the beach called for back-up after spotting a dinghy coming into view from the east. But by the time reinforcements arrived, there was nothing they could do, as the migrants were already boarding the boat. 'We try to do our best,' the officer said. 'As you can see, we are not going in the water because it's dangerous for us and it's dangerous for them. If you go in the water, you have to take care. 'If we try to stop them in the water and they drown, it is our fault under the law, currently.' He added: 'Three police for 50 migrants – it is not enough.' By Friday, though, the gendarme had seemingly overcome their reluctance to get wet, as officers were pictured knee-deep in water, dragging migrants ashore. In an apparent change in tactics, police even used tear gas and pepper spray to disperse migrants from the beach. The operation, though, was only a partial success, as some boats still made it out to sea. Meanwhile, a local politician in Boulogne, about 25 miles to the west of Calais, summed up the French attitude. 'OK, the British have given us millions of pounds and the cameras and drones help the gendarmes spot the migrants,' he said. 'But in England the authorities meet the migrants off the boats and take them to hotels. 'The impression we get is that the English are quite happy to see them. Otherwise why would they put them up in hotels? The magnet for the migrants has always been England. It's El Dorado. So let the migrants sail over to the UK and let the British sort out its problem.' Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp said: 'Despite the huge amounts of money we have paid them, the French response is completely useless. 'Migrants are able to circulate freely and even if they are stopped on the beach they are released so they can try again the next day. It is totally unacceptable that the French do not intercept at sea, as the Belgians do, but instead usher illegal immigrants into UK waters. 'It is no surprise that so far 2025 has been the worst year in history for illegal immigrants crossing the Channel. Labour's claim to smash the gangs lies in tatters.' Reform MP Lee Anderson said: 'None of this should come as any surprise. I went to the camps three years ago and it was obvious then that French police were turning a blind eye. Nothing has changed. 'I don't blame them – it's our fault. Fundamentally, by the time migrants reach Calais, they're in England. It might take them 20 attempts to get here, but they're not going anywhere else because they have so much help, not just from people traffickers but from non-government organisations. 'Arresting the traffickers won't work. Even if you lock up a gang leader for 30 years, 20 more will take his place because the cash rewards are so great. 'The only solution is to stop putting migrants in hotels when they arrive. Turn them around and send them straight back to France.' A Home Office spokesman said: 'We are strengthening our vital cooperation with France to disrupt the gangs behind these crossings. 'From this month, a new unit of dedicated officers has been mobilised to increase patrols along the northern coast of France. 'At the same time, the French authorities are working to amend their operational policy to allow maritime forces to intervene in shallow waters.'
