Wine production in the European Union will decline by about 3% this year due to unfavorable weather conditions and rising costs, agricultural lobbying group Copa-Cogeca predicts.
Wine production in the EU this year will amount to about 144 million hectoliters (hl), the group said in a press release.
Italy is expected to become the largest wine producer in Europe with 41 million hectoliters (up 7%), Spain will take second place (38.1 million hectoliters, up 18% year-on-year), and wine production in France will fall by 22%, which will cause the country to fall back to third place with 37.4 million hectoliters.
The outgoing year was marked by unpredictable weather and the effects of recent droughts in Europe, the report says. Meanwhile, vineyard diseases have become less of a problem than in 2023, experts say. In addition, rising prices for glass, gasoline, transportation services and fertilizers have significantly increased producers’ costs, and high interest rates have made it difficult to access the loans needed to grow the business.
“The European wine market is going through a difficult time, affected by high production costs and the situation on international markets,” said Luca Rigotti, head of the Wine Working Group at Copa-Cogeca. – “However, I am confident in the resilience and entrepreneurship of our farmers.
