The Vignerons indépendants de France ''(VIF)'' (English: ''Independent winemakers of France'') is a

viticultural Viticulture (from the Latin word for ''vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ran ...

trade association based in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

that promotes and assists small and independent winemakers within

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

, similar to the British

Society of Independent Brewers The Society of Independent Brewers (formerly the Small Independent Brewers Association, or SIBA) is an organization representing the interests of independent breweries in the UK. Founded in 1980, it was intended to fight the pub-tie system, u ...

''(SIBA)''. Members may use the association's logo on their products. In 1978, it was set up as ''confédération nationale des caves particulières. (CNCP)'', but changed their name and their charter in 2003 to try to unite and support independent winemakers and help them fight to keep their independence against powerful winemaking cooperatives. They currently have between 6000
Confederation Européenne des Vignerons Indépendants - VIF info
'' (accessed 26 January 2009) and 10000
Vin-du-Sud - Vignerons indépendants du Languedoc-Roussillon
' (accessed 26 January 2009) members throughout France (as of 2009). Each year, VIF arranges a number of wine fairs (''Salon des vins'') in different cities in France.

History and representation

Founded in 1978, the organization was known as the ''confédération nationale des caves particulières'' (abbreviated CNCP. In English: ''national confederation of wine producers''), chaired by François Chambovet. In 2003, the group's theme was changed, to help unite independent producers and bottlers. Throughout France, regional branches of the federation help to support independent winemakers. The national Confederation is based in Paris, where the Steering Committee serves as the representative of the vignerons indépendants among the trade unions. The national Confederation also aids in promotion of and communication about the vignerons indépendants.

Charter

The association's most important parts of their charter stipulate that members must: * Respect their

terroir (, ; from ''terre'', "land") is a French term used to describe the environmental factors that affect a crop's phenotype, including unique environment contexts, farming practices and a crop's specific growth habitat. Collectively, these contex ...

* Work and harvest their own

vineyard A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineya ...

* Make the wine themselves * Bottle their wine themselves * Keep

traditions

References

External links

*
Official Site
Wineries of France Wine industry organizations Trade associations based in France {{France-org-stub