Freeze on Planting Rights in Italy?

The National Council of the Italian wine industry association Unione Italiana Vini (UIV) has called for a one-year suspension of planting right approvals in Italy. Under EU regulations, member states may expand their vineyard area by up to 1% per year. In Italy, this currently amounts to around 6,500 hectares. UIV President Lamberto Frescobaldi warned that Italy is the only major wine-producing country in the world to have experienced vineyard growth, despite a nearly 10% decline in global demand over the past five years.

According to UIV, a one-year freeze on new plantings would provide the necessary time “to initiate a discussion and review of the system with all relevant stakeholders.” In particular, new priority criteria for granting planting rights should be introduced. Hilly and mountainous areas, as well as regions that perform well on the market, should be given preference.

“We cannot passively wait for top-down reform in our sector. The winegrowing regions – starting with producers and the protection consortia – must take rational action themselves, especially when it comes to regional restructuring of origin designations,” emphasized UIV Secretary General Paolo Castelletti. The aim, he said, is to bring winegrowing “back down to earth” in order to meet the challenge of competitiveness and to ensure fair compensation for winegrowers.

UIV estimates that by the end of the wine season (July 31), wine and must stocks will total between 42 and 44m hectoliters – roughly equivalent to an entire year’s harvest. VC