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COMMISSION OFTHEEUROPEAN COMMUNITIES
COM(77)645final
Brussels .29November 1977
REPORT
FROMTHECOMMISSION TOTHECOUNCIL "
ONTHEMEASURESAPPLICABLE TOGRAPEJUICE,INCLUDING
GRAPEMUST,IMPORTEDINTOTHEUNITEDKINGDOMAND
IRELANDFORTHEPRODUCTION OFBRITISHANDIRISHWINES
,V'-v>
i!S}0
COM(77)645final

INDEX
Page
INTRODUCTION
CHAPTER I
CHAPTER IIProfile ofBritish and Irish Wine Industries
A)Product delineation
i)British wine
ii)Irish wine
B)Production levels ofBritish andIrish wines
i)British wine
ii)Irish wine
C)Method ofproduction ofBritish andIrish wines
D)Quantities andorigin ofgrape juice /must
used for the production ofBritish and
Irish wine
i)Grape juice /muBt imports into theUK
ii)Major supplier countries ofgrape juice /
must forBritish wine production
iii)Quantities andorigin ofgrape juice /must
used for Irish wine production
E)Cost elements ofBritish andIrish wine
i)Grape juice /must import prices -UK
ii)Grape juice /must import prices -Ireland
iii)Breakdown ofwholesale prices of
British wines
iv)Excise duties onBritish wines
v)Excise duties onIrish wines
vi)Average retail prices ofBritish wine
vii)Average retail prices forIrish wine
Reference prices forgrape juice including
grape must ,whether concentrated ornot
CHAPTER IIITechnical requirements forgrape juice/
muBt forBritish and Irish wine production
CHAPTER IVThepresent situation :Community imports of
grape juice andmust
CONCLUSIONS1
1
1
2
2
2
3
3
4
4
5
6
6
7
7
7
8
9
9
10
12
13
15
ANNEX

INTRODUCTION
Reference prxcea andcountervailing charges forgrape juice ,
including grape must ,whether concentrated ornot ,hutwith an
added sugar content ofnotlessthan30fo^\wereintroduced on
1September 1976 byvirtue ofArticle 9(1)third subparagraph first and
second indent andArticle 9(3)first subparagraph ofRegulation (EEC)
No816/70^' of28April 1970 ,laying down additional provisions forthe
common organization ofthemarket inwine ,asamended by
Regulation (EEC)No1160/76^\WithArticle 9(3)second
subparagraph second indent ofthesaid Regulation aderogation
wasgranted toexempt grape juice /must ,whether concentrated
ornot ,until the 31December 1977 »from thelevy ofthe
count ervai ling charge when these products are imported into the
United Kingdom orIreland for theproduction ofBritish and
(4)Irish wines v .Byvirtue ofthis exemption the imports in
question arenot required torespect referenoe prices until
the 31December 1977 *
This report issubmitted tothe Council incompliance
with theCommission 'sstatement during theCouncil session
17/18May1976 totheeffect that :
"before areference price isfixed for imported
products intended fortheproduction ofBritish
andIrish wines ,theCommission will submit toit
j/theCouncil /areport ontheimplementation of
theprovisions inquestion accompanied ,ifnecessary
bysuitable proposals .Itisnot theCommission 's
intention tojeopardize theposition oftheIrish
andUnited Kingdom industries concerned .Both the
report andthemeasures inquestion should ensure
that these industries continue inoperation ."
This report sets out inChapter Iaprofile oftheBritish
andIrish Wine Industries andthefollowing chapters examine the
implications oftherespect ofreference prices fortheproducts
inquestion .
(■UReference prices andcountervailing charges forgrape juice ,including
must ,whether concentrated ornot ,with anadded sugar content ofmore
ithan30Jo,willbeintroduced onthe1stJanuary 1978*2)OJNoL99of5.5.1970 ,p.1
3)OJNoL135of24.5.1976 .p.14)Cf.Annex forthetext ofArticle 9(3 )second subparagraph2)OJNoL99of5.5.197O ,p.1
p.i4)Cf.Annex forthetext ofArticle 9(3)second subparagraphsecond indent *

CHAPTER I
PROFILE OPBRITISH AND IRISH WINE INDUSTRIES
A)PRODUCT DELINEATION
Theterms British saidIrish wine aregeneric and cover a
wide bracket ofproduot types .
i)British wine
Currently theterm British wine encompasses thefollowing
types ofproducts :
-British Sherry
-British ruby and sweet
white wines
-Aromatized British wine
-British fruit orflavoured
wines
-Ginger wine
-British tonic wines
-British mead wines
-Sparkling /slightly
sparkling British wines-fortified wine ofhigh
alcoholic strength
-fortified sweet wine
fortified wine with presence
ofaromatic flavouring
fortified wine with the addition
offruit orother flavours
British wines made with the
infusion ofginger
British wines incorporating
ingredients having accepted
medicinal properties
British wines made with the
use ofhoney
carbonated lower strength wines
Byfarthelargest proportion ofBritish wine isaccounted for
by"British Sherry "which iscirca 55%oftotal production and
ruby andsweet white wines take second place with 20 oftotal
production .Thus 75%ofBritish wine production could beclassified
as"Sherry-type "or"Port-type ".Although production methods dovary
according totheproduct type ,thetypology ofBritish wine canbe
summarised asbeing generally afortified product ,which asthe
finished product hasonaverage analcoholic strength band of15°-
18°GL,ofwhich ,withoneminor exceptionfgrape juice/must
isamajor constituent .

Inviewofitsalcoholicstrengthanddegreeof
sweetness,Britishwine,whichisonlyexportedinnegligible
quantities,competesontheUKmarketinparticularwith
liqueurwinesandotherfortifiedwines.
ii)Irishwine
Thetitle"Irishwine"currentlyincludesthreemaintypes
ofproducts:
-IrishSherry -fortifiedwineofanalcoholicstrength
of17.1GLandover
-Gingerwine-fortifiedwinewithgingerinfusionof
astrengthof14.2°GLandover
-Tonicwine -fortifiedwineofanalcoholiostrength
of14.2GLandover
incorporating ingredients havingaccepted
medicinalproperties
Nobreakdownastotherelativeimportanceofthesethree
productcategoriescouldbegivenbytheDepartmentofIndustry,
CommerceandEnergyinDublin.Astheminimumalcoholic
strengthsindicate,thesewines,allofwhich(withtheexception
ofcirca500hiwhichareexported)aremarketed .inIreland,are
•vinasimilarmarketcompetitivepositiontoBritishwines.
B)PRODUCTION LEVELSOFBRITISHA3TOIRISHWIFES
i)Britishwine
Therearecurrently12companiesoperatingintheUnitedKingdom
withanapproximateturnoverofh60mn.Productionisnormally
basedonbatchfermentation whichiscarriedoutcontinuously
throughouttheyear.

-3-
TABLEI–QuantitiesofBritishwineproduced,1972-1976
(inheotolitres)
1972
1973
1974
1975
1976580.460hi
701.440hi
800.560hi
632.680hi
539.125hi
SourcesH.M.CustomsandExcise(UK)
Note:Thesefiguresincludenegligiblequantitiesofother
products,includinghighstrengthciderandperry.
ii)Irishwine
InIreland,wherethreecompaniescurrentlyproduceIrishwine,
theannualproductionlevelisapproximately 8.000hi.
C)METHODOFPRODUCTION OFBRITISHANDIRISHWINES
Themajorcomponentingredients ofBritishandIrishwines
are1
-grapejuiceorgrapemust
-sugar
-water
-ethylalcoholofagricultural origin.
Themethodofproductionvariestosomeextentaccordingto
theproducttype.Insomelimitedcasesfermentation iscarriedout
withtheuseoffreshordriedfruit.However,fornearlyall
producttypesthegrapejuice/mustisdilutedtoitsoriginal
specifiogravityandisfermentedwithaddedsugarandthereafter
ethylalcoholofagricultural originmay"beadded.IntheUKthis
additionofalcoholmustbewithinthelimitslaiddownby
UKH.M.CustomsandExciselegislation .
Intermsofvolumethegrapejuice/muot,whenreturnedtoits
originalspecificgravity,acoountsfor30-55%ofthevolumeof
Britishwineandbetween20-30$ofthevolumeofIrishwine.
•••/•••

-4-
D)QUANTITIES ANDORIGINOFGRAPEJUICE/MUSTUSEDFORTHEPRODUCTION
OFBRITISHANDIRISHWINE
i)Grape.juice/mustimportsintotheUK
TheUKCustomsandExcisetradestatisticsdonotcategorize
theimportedgrapejuice/mustaccordingtoend-use^and
thereforenoofficialstatisticsexistforthequantitiesof
grapejuice/mustimportedforuseintheproductionof
Britishwine.Theglobalfiguresofthetotalgrapejuice/must
importsorconsignments aresetoutinthefollowingtables
TABLEII–Totalgrape.juice/mu3timportsfromthirdcountries
andconsignments fromtheEECintotheUK,1973-1976
Total
EEC+thirdcountries EECThirdcountries
1973 106.598hl 18.106hl88.492hl
1974 107.517hl 15.737hl91.780hl
1975 110.555hi 10.148hi100.407hi
1976 65.919hl 14.078hl51.841hl
Source1H.M.CustomsandExcise(UK)
NB.jThistableincludesconcentratedgrapejuice/must.
Thesefigures,however,donotindicatesolelythequantitiesof
grapejuice/mustimportedforproductionofBritishwine,which
isnormallyimportedat3xconcentration andastrengthof
between32.5"to34Baume.TheNationalAssociation ofBritish
WineProducershasestimatedthatanaverageofbetween
70.000hi-100.000hiof3xconcentratedgrapejuice/must
isimportedannuallyfromthirdcountries.Onthaotherhand
theAssociationestimatesthatonlyaverysmallproportionof
thegrapejuice/mustconsignedfromtheEECisintendedforuse
intheproductionofBritishwine.
•••/•••

i)Majorsuppliercountriesofgrape.juice/mustfor
Britishwineproduction
Overthelastfouryearsthemajorsuppliercountriesof
concentratedgrapejuice/mustforBritishwineproduction
havebeen,indecreasingorderofimportancetSpain,Greece,
ArgentinaandCyprus.However,asthefollowingtableindicates,
in1976theimportsfromSpaindeclinedsharplywhereasimports
fromCyprusinparticularhaveclimbed.Thefollowingtable
setsoutthetotalimportfiguresofallgrapejuice/must
irrespective oftheirend-use.Accordingtoinformationsupplied
bytheBritishWinetradevirtuallyalloftheimports
fromthirdcountriesareforusewithintheBritishwineindustry,
whereasonlynegligiblequantitiesof'Communityproducedgrape
juice/mustareforthisend-use.
TABLEIII-Breakdownofsuppliercountriesofgrapeiuice/must-
UK1973-1976
1973 1974 1975
68.4111976
Italy
PRofGermanySpain
Cyprus
Greece
FranceArgentma
SouthAfrica
Malta31.034
14.139
29.733
10.748
1.541
1.534
1.692
4-55552.109
1.399
IO.295
15.655
13.515
9-479
4.699
6.132
4.61416.591
12.902
3.473
1.947
4.08684882813.057
15.866
15.448
3.156
2.023
3.033
5.150
5.574
SourcetMinistryofAgriculture,FisheriesandFood(UK)
KB.tThistableincludesconcentratedgrapejuice/must

-6-
iii)Quantitiesandoriginofgrape .juice/mustusedfor
Irishvrineproduction■" * i>i111um
IncontrasttotheBritishwineindustry,theIrishwine
industryimportssolelyfromSpain.Theannualquantityof
concentratedgrapejuice/mustimportedfortheproductionof
Irishwineisapproximately 454hi.Inthepastsmallquantities
ofgrapejuice/mustforIrishwineproductionhavebeensupplied
"byItalyandPrance.Italysupplied265hiin1974and142hi
in1975,andPrancesupplied136hiin1974^However,according
totheDepartmentofIndustry,CommerceandEnergyofIreland
nofurtherconsignments havetakenplacesincesuppliesof
specification grapejuice/mustwereneitheravailablenoreconomic.
E.COSTELEMENTS OPBRITISHANDIRISHWITCE
i)Grapejuice/mustimportprices-UK
AccordingtotheUKCustomsandExcisereturnsthelatestavailable
pricesonaCIPportbasisforgrapejuice/mustforBritishwine
productionareasfollows:
Suppliercountry CIPprice(fc/hl)
Greece h24
Cyprus fc32
Argentma fc27
Spain /~h437*
SourcetH.M.CustomsandExoise(UK)
*NationalAssociation ofBritishWineProducersaffirmthatthis
pricedoesnotrelatetopurchasesforBritishwineproduction.
Untilthe31December1977"thecustomsdutieseffectivelyapplied
^arethefollowingi
2f, Greece
0% Cyprus
-50%OT28$(FullCCT.)SpainandArgentina–infunction
ofthespecificgravityofthe
productinquestion.

-7-
Asfrom 1January 1978 full CCTrateB will "beapplied to
grape juice /muat imports from Cyprus ,andgrape juice imported
from Greece will benefit from zero tariff rate ,whereas grape must
imported from Greece will "becharged ata10%tariff rate .
(This difference intariff arrangement "between grape juice and
grape must imported from Greece stems from thefact that
grape juice isincluded among theproducts inAnnex III ofthe
Agreement establishing anAssociation between theEuropean Economic
Community andGreece 1961 .)
ii)Grape .juice /must import prices -Ireland
According totheIrish Department ofIndustry ,Commerce andEnergy
themost recent CIPprice forimported Spanish grape juice /must for
Irish wine production ish57/hi.Inaddition towhich 28%customs
duties arechargeable onthese imports .
iii)Breakdown ofwholesale prices ofBritish wines
Prices naturally are ofstrategic commercial importance andthere
will bevariations according tothevalue ofthematerials used ,
thealcoholic strength anddegree ofsweetness andtherefore only
anestimated average canbegiven .TheUKMinistry ofAgriculture ,
Fisheries andFood hasestimated atypical wholesale price ofIT10.50
foracase oftwelve 70clbottles andhasgiven thefollowing cost
estimate t
Cost ofBritish wine fc1.90
andbottling materials
Services eto . h2.1Ö
Excise duty h6.42
ix10.50
This wholesale price excludes VATof8$.
iv)Excise duties onBritish wines
Astheabove estimate indicates ,byfarthelargest cost element
ofBritish wine istheexcise duty .Excise duties arecharged
aocording tothestrength within various brands .
*Intheabsence ofapreferential tariff arrangement being decided
bytheCouncil ofMinisters forCyprus inthenegociations dueto
take plaoe this year .
•••J•••

ThecurrentratesofexcisedutiesonBritishwinesare
setoutinthefollowingtable:
TABLEIV-UKExcisedutiesonBritishwines
Stillwine
fc/gall fc/hlSparkling wine
fc/gallt/hl
r2.110
r3.160
-3.475h46.42
ii69.52
t76.45h2.440
h3.490
1>3.805h53.68
&76.78
h83.71
h3.475
+h0.470
perdegree
orpart
thereof
inexcess
of18°GLh76.45
+h10.34
perdegree
orpart
thereof
inexcess
of18°OLh3.805
h0.470+
perdegree
orpart
thereof
inexcess
of18°GLh83.71
h10.34
perdegree
orpart
thereof
inexcess
of18°GL
Source:M.A.F.F.(UK)
v)ExcisedutiesonIrishwines
NobreakdownofIrishwinewholesalepricecouldbegiven
bytheIrishwineindustrybutIrishwinesaresubjected
to10<$>VATandthefollowingratesofexciseduties:
TABLEV-IrishExcisedutiesonIrishwinesNotexceeding
10°GL
15°GL
18°GL
Exceeding
18°GL
proof)
proof)
proof)
proof)Wgall
h1.921
h1.991
It2.302
h2.302
+i0.14for+
everydegree
proofabove
42°proofWhl
h42.26
b43.80
b50.64
£150.64
h3.08Notexceeding
14.2°GL(25
17.1°GL(30°
23.75°GL(42°
Exceeding
23.75GL(42°
Source:DepartmentofIndustry.CommerceandEnergy,Dublin

-9-
vi)Average retail prices ofBritish wine
Theretail prices ofBritish wine vary according totheproduct
type andtheretail outlet .According totheUKMinistry of
Agriculture ,Fisheries andFood these prices vary between
h1-k2per 70clbottle .However ,widely advertised "brands
with higher sales turnover retail "between b1.20-IT1.30.
vii)Average retail prices forIrish wine
NoIrish wine issold inbulk andtheaverage retail price for
a75clbottle isb1.10 ,thenormal range ofretail prices
being b1.00 tob1.30 per 75clbottle .
Itisinteresting tonote that theretail prices ofBritish and
Irish wines arequite similar despite thehigher prices that the
Irish wine industry pays forimported grape juice /must ,which
according tothat industry accounts forcirca 74%ofthematerial
costs ofIrish wine .This maybeexplained bythe
different levels ofexcise duties inthe two Member States .

-10-
CHAPTER II
REFERENCE PRICES FOR CRAPS JUICE INCLUDING
GRAPE MUST ,WHETHER CONCENTRATED ORNOT
Until the31December 1977 imports ofgrape juice /must into
theUKandIreland fortheproduction ofBritish orIrish wine areexempt
from countervailing charges andconsequently such imports arenot
inpractice required torespect reference prices .The current levels
ofthereference prices forgrape juice /must ,whether concentrated ornot ,
with anadded sugar content notexceeding 30$were fixed "byRegulation
(EEC)No2925/76andhave avalidity until 15December 1977 »atwhich
time newlevels will befixed forthefollowing year .Reference prices
forgrape juice /must ,whether concentrated ornot ,with anadded sugar
content exceeding 30%will beapplicable from 1January 1978 •
Table VIsets outacomparison between the current reference
price levels andtheCIPimpor.t prices plus customs duties forgrape juice /
must used intheproduction ofBritish andIrish wines .Since thegrape
juice /must inquestion isnormally imported atbetween 32.5 Baume -
34Baume ,theequivalent potential alcoholio strength atthese two
Baume levels were taken for the calculation ofthereference prices .
Furthermore ,reference prices arefixed inunits ofaccount but the
price that imports would otherwise berequired torespect would be
expressed innational currencies using theagricultural (green )rate
ofexchange :1UA«IT0,5696 sterling and 1UA-h0,69324 Ireland .
Therefore Table VIalso expresses reference prices innational currencies
ata"green "rate ofexchange since these would represent theminimum
frontier prices .
The table clearly indicates that CIPprices plus import duties
fortheproducts inquestion imported from third countries into theUK
aresubstantially below reference prices .Thereference prices
are ,insome cases ,upto100$higher than theimport prices .InIreland ,
however ,theimport prices meet thereference prices .Although reference
prices areuniform inUA,differences intheir levels appear even between
2currencies which have thesame market value .This isduetothediffering
"green "ratesofexchange (AUA),-the Irish pound being ,more closely
aligned toitsmarket value . -
•••/•••

-11-
TABLE VI-Reference prices compared with imported concentrated #rape .juice /must
(CIPprices plu3 customs duties intheUKandIreland (July 1977 ))
UNITED KINGDOM REPUBLIC OPIRELAND
32.5 -34Baumé 32.5 -34Baumé
II)Reference prices (Reg.(EEC)No2925/76) inUnits ofAccount
-white grape juice /must 80.03 -85.79 UA/hl 80.03 -85.79 UA/hl
-nonwhite grape juice/must 83.94 -89.98 UA/hl 83.94 -89.98 UA/hl
2)Reference prices
innational currencies atgreen rates
ofexchange
I-white grape juice/must h45.59 -h48.86/hl h55.49 -h59.49/hl
I-nonwhite grape juice/must It47.12 -I,51.25/hl h58.20 -h62.39/hl
3)Import prices (CIFprices +customs duties )
Greece h24.48/hl
Cyprus h32/hl
Argent inia ï»34.56/hl
Spain /~h55.04 /hl7 h72.96 /hl
*Note :TheNational Association ofBritish Wine Producers affirm that nopurchases have been concluded with
Spain forgrape juice/must forBritish wine production this year .This price relates topurchases for
other end-uses .

-12-
CHAPTER III
TECHNICAL REQUIREMENTS FORGRAPE JUICE /MUST
FOR BRITISH AND IRISH WINE PRODUCTION
TheNational Association ofBritish Wine ^Producers together
with theIrish wine industry laygreat stress onthefact that ,
although theprice ofEECgrape juice /must isavery dissuasive
factor ,itisnot the only one .
According totheBritish andIrish Wine industries their products
have "been produced traditionally foralong time andthese products ,which
havewell established markets ,must meet theconsumer 'srequirements .Toensure
this ,"both industries have specifications which they require of
grape juice/must .TheBritish wine industry sets outspecific
technical specifications which laydown amongst other requirements
that thegrape juice /must :
(1)hasteen vacuum concentrated from juice offreshly pressed grapes ;
(2)thegrape juice/must must liebetween 32.5° Baume to34°Baume ;
(3)hasnoaddition ofextraneous sugars ,colouring matter
whether natural ornot ,nor flavours }
(4)hasnotbeen fined orclarified butisbright ifthe
grape juice /must iswhite anddeep redifnonwhite .
Inaddition totechnical requirements ,analytical specifications
arelaid down specifying maximum andminimum types ofacidity levels ,
sulphur dioxide ,calcium andminerals .Furthermore organoleptic tests
arecarried outinorder toensure other requirements .
••/•••

-13-
CHAPTER IV
THEPRESENT SITUATION :COMMTFTTTY IMPORTS OFGRAPE JUICE ATTDMUST
1.Imports into theCommunity ofgrape juice /must ,whether concentrated
ornot ,form part ofawell established ,tradition within two
specifio sectors ofactivity ,firstly that oftheFrench grape
juice industry which imports thenon-concentrated product and ,
secondly ,that oftheBritish andIrish wine industries which
import the concentrated product .
2.Inpractical terms these imports ,forthegreat part ,benefit
from preferential tariff arrangements ,theorigins ofwhich
date "back •before ',theTreaty ofRome .Hence ,zero or
reduced rates ofduties areapplied byFrance onthe
imports ofMaghreb grape juice /must ,within quotas forMorooco
andTunisia .Similarly concentrated grape juice /must is
imported into theUKfrom Cyprus atazero rate of
duty until 31December 1977 layvirtue oftheextension ofthe
"Commonwealth "arrangements until that date .Equally historical
events result intariffs which vary according toMember States
forthe imports ofgrape must wholly produced inGreece .
3.Thus ,currently there areimportant disparities between the
tariff arrangements and itcanonly beexpected that trade
flows follow themost advantageous route .Although insome cases
changes tothese arrangements are imminent ,nonetheless disparities
will persist .On1January 1978 grape juice /must imported into the
*
UKandIreland from Cyprus will becharged atfull CCT ,whereas
grape juice andgrape must imports from Greece into theUnited
•Kingdom will becharged 0%and10$respectively .Thetariff
arrangements between France andtheMaghreb countries will be
re-examined by1979 *
4.Thetariff concessions forgrape juice /must ,however ,arenotlinked
toanundertaking bythethird country inquestion torespect
reference prices andtherefore thecountervailing charge is
automatically levied ,except inthecase ofgrape juice imported
from Greece andtheproducts imported fortheproduction of
British and Irish wines .
*Cf.footnote onpage 7«
m••/ m•m

-14-
5«The countervailing charges were fixed ,atrelatively lowlevels
because noreference prices hadbeen fixed forthe products in
question until 16December 1976 .When reference prices for
these products were first fixed ,thesame levels ofcountervailing
charges were maintained because theCommission wasaware ofthe
difficulties involved inincreasing this charge which ,since no
third country hadundertaken torespect thereference prices ,
would beautomatically applied .
6.Thelegal basis fortheexoneration ofthecountervailing charges
ongrape juice wholly produced inGreece hasexpired ,andwith the
termination ofthetransitional arrangements forgrape juice /must ,
aslaid down inArticle 59(l)koftheTreaty ofAccession ,afurther
exoneration from thecountervailing charges forgrape juice /must
for theproduction ofBritish and Irish wines would require a
derogation ,onthebasis ofArticle 43oftheTreaty ofRome ,
from theCommunity principle ofuniform application ofthe
countervailing charges aslaid down byCouncil Regulation (EEC)
No816/70.
•••/•••

-15-
CONCLUSIONS
1.TheCommission notes ,first ,that thesystem ofreference prices /
countervailing charges will apply togrape juice /must forthe
production ofBritish andIrish wine from 1January 1978 and ,
secondly ,that ithasalready undertaken not tojeopardize the
position oftheIrish andUnited Kingdom industries concerned .
This report shows that atcurrent levels thecountervailing charges
represent only 3-4%ofthewholesale price ofBritish andIrish
wine .Anewderogation onthebasis ofarticle 43oftheTreaty
ofRome would require acompelling economic justification andthe
Commission does notconsider ,that thereport gives ground forthis ,
particularly since theUnited Kingdom 'sownexcise duty on
British wine normally represents atleast 60per cent ofthe
wholesale price ofBritish wine ,even before VAT ischarged .
"Furthermore ,such aderogation should not conflict with theestablished
principles ofCommunity lawand ,inparticular ,with theprinciple of
non-discrimination ."
2.Nonetheless ,since anyadjustment ofexcise duties could take time
andinview oftheconsiderations inparagraph 3below ,the
Commission concludes that thecountervailing charges should be
held attheir current levels until 15December 1979 andisready
tosubmit totheCouncil aproposal forsuitable amendment of
Council Regulation (EEC)No816/70forthis purpose .
3.Theimpact ofthefull CCTongrape juice /must hasalso tobe
considered .Thepossible effects ofthecontinuing wide disparity
intariff arrangements (e.g. onFrench imports ofgrape juice /must
from theMaghreb ,onUnited Kingdom andIrish imports of
grape juice /must from Cyprus andGreece )after 1January 1978
need tobekept under review .

ANNEX
Regulation (EEC)No816/70asamended "byRegulation (EEC)
No1160/76,Article 9(3)second subparagraph reads asfollows s
"However ,thecountervailing charge shall notbelevied
-until 31December 1977 ,onimports into theUnited Kingdom
andIreland ofgrape juice (including grape must )and
concentrated grape juice (including grape must )intended
for theproduction inthese twoMember States ofproducts
falling within theheading No22.07 oftheCommon Customs
Tariff forwhich Member States mayallow theuse ofa
composite name including theword "wine "pursuant tothe
first subparagraph ofArticle 30(l)."