Editing Languedoc (section)

==Economy==
===Agriculture===
Languedoc is a significant producer of wine. Today it produces more than a third of the [[grape]]s in France, and is a focus for outside investors. Wines from the Mediterranean coast of Languedoc are labeled as Languedoc, those from the interior have other labels such as [[Fronton, Haute-Garonne|Fronton]], [[Gaillac AOC|Gaillac]], or [[Limoux AOC|Limoux]] to the west – and [[Côtes du Rhône]] towards the east.

Other crops include [[wheat]] (the traditional crop which made the fortune of the landlords and parliamentarians based in [[Toulouse]], and for whose trade the famous [[Canal du Midi]] was built), [[maize]] (the new and nowadays most common crop in the region), [[olive]]s (only on the Mediterranean coast of Languedoc), fruit, and rice (in some coastal areas). In the hilly and mountainous areas of the interior, sheep and goats are raised for meat and cheese. The coastal area is, naturally, a source of fish and shellfish.

===Industry===
[[Image:A380 Reveal 2.jpg|thumb|The first completed [[Airbus A380]] at the "A380 Reveal" event on 18 January 2005 in [[Toulouse]], home base of the European [[aerospace]] industry.]]

Aerospace ([[Airbus]], [[CNES]], etc.), electronics ([[Freescale]], etc.), and bio-tech industries in [[Toulouse]]; high-tech, electronics, and computer ([[IBM]]) industries in [[Montpellier]]; pharmaceutical industry ([[Pierre Fabre Group]]) in [[Castres]].

There is also a significant chemical sector in [[Toulouse]], which has been quite battered since the terrible explosion of [[AZF (factory)|AZF]] on 21 September 2001. It has been decided that chemical industries would be moved out of [[Toulouse]], and a large campus devoted to [[cancer research]] and bio-tech R&D will be opened on the site.

Elsewhere in the region industries are small and in decline, in particular around the formerly mining areas of [[Alès]] and [[Carmaux]] in the interior of the region.

===Services and tourism===
Services are the largest sector of the economy in the region. In particular, government services employ a significant part of the workforce, especially in small towns. Key administrations have been relocated to the region, such as France's National Meteorology Office ([[Météo-France]]) relocated from Paris to [[Toulouse]] in 1982.

The area is also a major tourist destination. There exists three types of tourism. First, a massive summer tourism industry on the coast, with huge sea resorts such as [[Cap d'Agde]], [[Palavas-les-Flots]], or [[Le Grau-du-Roi]], built in the 1970s.

Tourism related to history and art is also strong, as the region contains the historic cities of [[Carcassonne]], Toulouse, [[Montpellier]], countless Roman monuments (such as the Roman arenas in [[Nîmes]]), medieval abbeys, [[Romanesque architecture|Romanesque]] churches, and old castles (such as the ruined [[Cathar castles]] in the mountains of [[Corbières, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence|Corbières]], testimony of the bloody [[Albigensian Crusade]]).

More recently, "green" and sports tourism is on the rise, with the gorges of the [[Tarn (river)|Tarn]], the [[Ardèche Gorges]], as well as the vast preserved expanses of [[Cévennes]], Ardèche, [[Lauragais]], and other sites.

Tourism on the [[Canal du Midi]] combines history (for example viewing the nine locks of Fonseranes near [[Béziers]]) with activities such as boating on the Canal, and walking or cycling on the towpaths.

Toulouse and Montpellier are also common places for business congresses and conventions.{{citation needed|date=October 2021}}

In April 2019, The [[The Guardian|Guardian]]'s travel section included two Languedoc locations in its list of ''20 of the most beautiful villages in France''. The two were Saint-Guilhem-le-Désert with "one of the finest examples of Romanesque architecture in the region" and Estaing, whose "narrow streets have hardly changed over the centuries".<ref>{{cite news|title=20 of the most beautiful villages in France|date=13 April 2019|url=https://www.theguardian.com/travel/2019/apr/13/20-most-beautiful-historic-villages-france-loire-provence|work=The Guardian|access-date=13 April 2019|quote=From a fairytale fortress in the Loire to a clifftop stronghold in Provence, these charming, historic villages make perfect bases for exploring rural France}}</ref>