French, Italian winemakers fearful of EU reform
Source: Reuters
By Jeremy Smith BRUSSELS, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Europe risks undermining its top-selling quality wines and letting centuries-old vineyards disappear if EU farm ministers back a blueprint for policy reform next year, French and Italian winemakers say. Growers behind labels such as Chianti, Burgundy and Champagne already face stiff competition from New World giants such as Australia, Argentina and Chile, whose slick marketing campaigns have boosted their share of wine sales in Europe. The executive European Commission's response to that is a reform plan, not yet finalised, to focus on quality rather than quantity and to divert subsidies to end the wine surpluses that end up being distilled into industrial alcohol or biofuel. Italian and French quality winemakers reject many of the ideas circulating in Brussels. France and Italy are the two largest wine producers both in the 25-member EU and worldwide. Spain ranks third in both categories. One of their main complaints is about the Commission's idea of ending a ban on imported unfermented grape juice for use by EU wine makers. To allow non-European grapes to be mixed into their famous protected brands, which command premiums worldwide, would be a threat to the prestige of EU wine industry, they say. "There must be a guarantee that a kilogram of grapes from a specific vineyard goes all the way down to the bottle of wine on a table in Tokyo," said Riccardo Ricci Curbastro, a leading producer of Italy's sparkling Franciacorta wines. "In Roman times, if you sold an 'origin' wine that was really a table wine, you were sent to jail," he said. "And wine is not just a drink...We are not just promoting wine, we are promoting our lifestyle." HILLSIDE VINEYARDS Other ideas in the Brussels blueprint include scrapping an existing ban on planting new vines, either immediately or after 2013, and making generous cash offers for growers to dig up 10 percent of the EU's vines permanently to curb excess output. For much of the 1980s and 1990s the EU was notorious for its so-called wine lakes, which have since diminished. Producers say Brussels would be putting at risk many traditional high-quality hillside vineyards, which would be relocated to the plains and become more industrialised. The Commission calculates that its incentives scheme would result in 400,000 hectares of vines being dug up. Producers see that as an environmental disaster and say only the top end of the EU's wine market would be affected, so allowing more quality New World imports. "They (Commission) want to carry out a massive grubbing-up plan of 10 percent of the EU's vineyard area," said Christian Paly, who makes Tavel rose wine in France's Rhone valley. "On the other hand, they want to free up planting so you can plant where you like -- which is totally contradictory. They also think that to increase the competitivity of European wines, you can use all the winemaking practices of our competitors." While the Commission still has to formalise its wine reform plan, most of the philosophy behind it is already known. EU farm ministers will probably start to discuss details in mid-2007. An underlying principle is a carrot-and-stick approach similar to that deployed in last year's sugar reform, by offering cash rewards for winemakers to dig up vines on land they do not need to use, to cut back on unnecessary production. "Whenever we abandon wine production in Europe, we lose the possibility to get it back. It takes time to start growing vines," Ricci Curbastro said. "We will lose the opportunity for the future. It's not like seeding corn or wheat." Vines are usually planted for a period of 30 years but can only really start to be used three years after planting. "The big problem is about quality," said Marco Pallanti, president of the 84-year-old Consorzio Vino Chianti Classico that represents Italy's Chianti Classico winemakers. "We have to maintain our standards."
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