China's Bright Food Group is set to buy a 70-percent stake in Diva Bordeaux, the independent wine broker said on Saturday, as China further cements its presence in France's wine market.
"This deal is contingent on Shanghai Sugar, Cigarette and Wine (SSCW) acquiring a stake in Diva Bordeaux," Bright Food said in a statement, referring to one of its subsidiaries.
Diva will be able to "reinforce its international development, especially in China, through Bright Food's distribution network which includes hundreds of specialised shops," according to Bright Food, a state-owned conglomerate that is one of China's largest food producers.
Fine Bordeaux wines are some of the most popular with Chinese consumers. China and Hong Kong alone drank half of the export value of the wines in 2011 -- 342 million euros ($430 million), according to Bordeaux wine industry group CIVB.
As a result, the region's winelands have attracted increasing numbers of Chinese investors over the last four years.
Twenty Bordeaux winemakers have been taken over by Chinese, and the number is expected to increase to 30 by the end of 2012.
Since its creation in 1979, Diva Bordeaux has risen to become one of the biggest brokers in the wine industry.
The company reported sales of 33 million euros for 2011.