Mesnay

Mesnay
Mesnay
Commune
	The town hall in Mesnay
	Location of Mesnay
	Mesnay Mesnay
	Coordinates: 46°54′09″N 5°47′53″E / 46.9025°N 5.7981°E
Country	France
Region	Bourgogne-Franche-Comté
Department	Jura
Arrondissement	Dole
Canton	Arbois
Intercommunality	Communauté de Communes Arbois Poligny Salins Coeur du Jura
Government
• Mayor (2014–2020)	Pascal Drogrey
Area 1	8.32 km2 (3.21 sq mi)
Population (2021)	576
• Density	69/km2 (180/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	39325 /39600
Elevation	303–600 m (994–1,969 ft)
	1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Mesnay is a commune in the Jura department in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté in eastern France.

Population

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1793	1,150	—
1806	1,197	+4.1%
1821	1,102	−7.9%
1831	1,147	+4.1%
1841	1,026	−10.5%
1851	1,138	+10.9%
1861	960	−15.6%
1872	860	−10.4%
1881	803	−6.6%
1891	706	−12.1%
1901	777	+10.1%
1911	646	−16.9%

Year	Pop.	±%
1921	548	−15.2%
1931	513	−6.4%
1946	530	+3.3%
1954	586	+10.6%
1962	609	+3.9%
1968	578	−5.1%
1975	505	−12.6%
1982	530	+5.0%
1990	489	−7.7%
1999	567	+16.0%
2006	550	−3.0%
2012	556	+1.1%

Location

Mesnay is located in the Reculée des Planches gorge, 1.8 km from Arbois, 3.4 km from Les Planches-près-Arbois

Economy

Five winemakers currently have their cellars in Mesnay, whose south-facing slopes, known as the Côteau des Nouvelles, are covered in vines:

Domaine Martin Faudot (Michel Faudot)
Domaine de la Cibellyne (Benoît Royer)
Domaine Hughes Béguet (Patrice Béguet)
Domaine des Bélemnites (Christian Melet)
Thomas Popy

There is also a vine nursery in Mesnay, run by Ahmed Lahlouh.

One dairy farm remains in the village, run by Samuel Étievant, who has recently had his production certified as organic, and delivers his milk to the Fruitière du Plateau Arboisien. The family also runs a small campsite and bed-and-breakfast on the farm.

Other cottages in the village are also available for holiday rentals.

In the mornings a small general store sells fresh bread and patisseries.

A bar, Le Nouvel Atelier, opened in the village in 2017,

A wholesale jam producer, Patrick Le Gall, set up his business in Mesnay in 2015, La Francomtoise de confiturerie.

Other local businesses include building, roadworks and electrical companies.

Since 2011 the premises of the former village school have been occupied by a Montessori nursery and primary school, Graine de Vie.

Places to Visit

Cartonnerie de Mesnay, Écomusée du carton et maison de l'abeille

https://ecomusee-carton.org/

Originally a cardboard factory, Hétier Père et Fils, founded in 1710 on the banks of the Cuisance river, this disaffected industrial site has since been cleaned up and transformed into a cultural site. The former cardboard works can be visited in the Écomusée du carton, whilst a small, neighbouring museum, the Maison de l'abeille, provides an interesting introduction to apiculture, which still thrives in the village. The site is now also home to a number of associations, artists and craftspeople, including sculptors, a puppet-theatre company and a business producing high-end tree houses.

Every Tuesday evening throughout July and August the village organises a very popular outdoor food market.