Get to know France’s wine-filled history, changing food habits

Les Français – the French, as the people of France call themselves – simply don’t fit neatly into any one box.

Now that they’re hosting the Olympics, Food explores the particularities of French wine and food.

Ah, the reds, whites and rosés! The French used to guzzle their wines without moderation. It wasn’t until 1956 that the government barred children – under 14, that is – from being served alcohol in school canteens.

But since the 1960s, when French drinkers were downing a woozy 130 or so litres (35 or so gallons) of wines each per year, plus many more litres of beer and cider, they have steadily sobered up, cutting their consumption by around three-quarters and drinking higher-quality wines than the rotgut that washed down older generations’ meals, Insee data shows.

Food habits are changing, too. Schools play a key role in passing from generation to generation France’s high regard for freshly cooked meals, with canteens typically offering a starter and a main course followed by a milk product (cheese, yoghurt) and/or a dessert.

The Agriculture Ministry says about 60 per cent of students eat at their school canteens at least four times a week. Schools also offer tasting classes and school canteens are obliged to offer at least one vegetarian menu per week.

“Does your family pray before eating?” asks one joke about French eating habits. The punchline: “No, we are French, we know how to cook.”

The French are just behind the Italians as the least overweight population in the European Union (EU), according to the most recent figures from the EU’s statistics agency, from 2019. It found that 47 per cent of French adults were overweight, with a body mass index of 25 or above, compared with 46 per cent of Italian adults.

But French people also have become fans of what they call “le fast food” – burgers, pizzas, kebabs, etc.

In the 45 years since McDonald’s opened its first restaurant in France in 1979, the country has become one of its largest markets in Europe, with 1,560 eateries in cities and towns nationwide.