REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND THE COUNCIL in accordance with Article 184(8) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 on the experience gained with the implementation of the wine reform of 2008
Date: 2012-12-10
Institutions: European Commission
Subjects: agrarian reform, aid for restructuring, competitiveness, export (EU), liberalisation of the market, supply and demand, viticulture, wine

EUROPEAN 
COMMISSION 

Brussels, 10.12.2012  
COM(2012) 737 final 

REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT AND 
THE COUNCIL 

in accordance with Article 184(8) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 on the 
experience gained with the implementation of the wine reform of 2008 

{SWD(2012) 415 final} 

EN 

   EN 

 
 
 
 
  
 
 
REPORT FROM THE COMMISSION TO THE EUROPEAN PARLIAMENT 
AND THE COUNCIL 

in accordance with Article 184(8) of Council Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007 on the 
experience gained with the implementation of the wine reform of 2008 

1. 

INTRODUCTION 

The reform of the wine CMO adopted in 20081 and incorporated into Council Regulation 
(EC)  No 1234/20072  of  22 October 2007  (hereinafter  'SCMO  Regulation')  aims  to 
increase the competitiveness of the EU wine producers. It was designed as a two-phase 
process.  It  was  firstly  essential  to  reach  a  market  balance  through  the  progressive 
removal  of  market  intervention  measures,  accompanied  by  a  three-year  grubbing-up 
scheme,  while  the  second  phase  as  from  2012  focuses  on  tools  to  strengthen  the 
competitiveness  of  EU  wine  producers,  such  as  restructuring  and  conversion  of 
vineyards,  investments  and  promotion  in  third  countries.  These  measures  are  managed 
through  NSP.  Besides,  new  regulatory  measures  on  oenological  practices,  quality  and 
labelling have been harmonised, updated and simplified with the view to become more 
consumer and market oriented. 

In  accordance  with  Article 184(8)  of  the  SCMO  Regulation,  "the  Commission  shall 
produce  a  report  by  the  end  of  2012,  in  particular  taking  into  account  the  experience 
gained with the implementation of the reform". Therefore, this report focuses on the first 
three years of the reform's implementation, in particular in what concerns the grubbing-
up scheme and the measures included in the NSP. It also analyses the impact of the new 
quality policy, the new rules on wine labelling and on oenological practices. The trends 
in  the  EU wine  market  since  2007,  following  the  adoption  of  the  reform,  are  also 
analysed. 

The report is based on communications submitted by Member States to the Commission 
in  accordance  with  EU  law,  the  report  on  the  implementation  of  the  measure  for  the 
promotion  on  third  country  markets3,  the  report  of  the  Court  of  Auditors4,  the  external 
evaluation  of  COGEA  on  the  wine  reform,  and  internal  analyses  based  on  official 
statistical information. 

Since this report focuses on the implementation of the reform between 2008 and 2012, it 
does  not  address  the  issue  of  the  end  of  the  transitional  prohibition  on  planting  rights, 
which was decided in 1999. The reform brought about no changes, but only postponed 
the end of this prohibition. However, due to strong concerns expressed by certain MS and 
stakeholders, a HLG on wine planting rights was set-up with a view to issuing a report by 
the end of 2012. 

1 
2 
3 
4 

OJ L 148, 6.6.2008, p. 1. 
OJ L 299, 16.11.2007, p. 1. 
COM(2011)774 final 
OJ C 167, 13.6.2012, p. 17. 

EN 

2 

   EN 

 
 
                                                 
2. 

MARKET SITUATION 

The EU wine market situation can be characterised in recent years by the following factors: a 
decreasing  EU  wine  production,  a  decrease  in  EU  wine  consumption  and  increased  wine 
exports to third countries considerably exceeding the increase in wine imports. 

The net result is a decrease of stocks leading to increasing wine prices, in particular over the 
last  two  years.  Market  balance  was  reached,  while  certain  market  measures  such  as  the 
support for potable alcohol distillation and for the use of concentrated must were phased out. 

2.1. 

Supply 

The  total  wine  and  must  production  in  the  EU  fell  progressively  from  186 Mio hl  in 2006-
2007 to 163 Mio hl in 2011-2012. This decrease can be explained to a considerable extent by 
the reduction in the EU's wine-growing area (-370 000 ha between 2006 and 2011 (-10% of 
total areas)), partially supported (44%) through the grubbing-up scheme. Taking as reference 
an  average  EU  yield  of  50 hl/ha,  the  current  EU  wine-growing  area  (around  3.3 Mio ha) 
produce  on  average  165  Mio  hl  of  wine,  very  close  to  the  actual  total  production  in  2011-
2012. The restructuring and conversion  of more than  150 000 ha over the last  years  has not 
led to a general increase of yields at EU level, but rather to the production of higher quality 
wine and/or at lower unit costs. 

In 2011-2012, the 163 Mio hl of wine and must production is divided as follows: 103 Mio hl 
(63%) of  PDO/PGI  wines,  5 Mio hl  (2%) of  varietal  wines,  51 Mio hl  (31%) of  other  wines 
without  GI  and  the  remaining  7 Mio hl  (4%) of  grape  juice.  France  and  Italy  remain  the 
largest  EU  wine  producing  Member  States  in  2011-2012  (51 and  45 Mio hl,  respectively), 
followed by Spain (37 Mio hl), Germany (9 Mio hl) and Portugal (5.6 Mio hl). 

The production of 'varietal wines', which was not allowed before the reform, represents now 
2%  of  the  total  production,  whereas  wines  with  PGI  are  also  increasingly  labelled  with  the 
indication  of  the  vine  variety(-ies).  However,  the  development  of  varietal  wines  in  the  EU 
seems to lag behind consumption trends in several third countries and in non-producing EU 
countries, more oriented towards the consumption of varietal wines and less oriented towards 
PDO/PGI wines, as far as low and medium quality wines are concerned. 

2.2. 

EU Demand 

The EU human consumption of wine has decreased from almost 140 Mio hl in 2006-2007 to 
an  estimated  value  of  slightly  over  135 Mio hl  in  2010-2011.  However,  the  trend  is  not 
uniform. Wine consumption (per capita and total) decreases in the main Southern European 
wine-producing  Member  States  and  it  increases  in  Northern  Member  States.  As indicated 
above, the latter countries are more oriented towards branded wines or varietal wines, rather 
than PDO/PGI wines. Another relevant development is the increasing demand for bulk wines, 
due to lower transport costs. 

The  total  of  industrial  uses  of  wine  in  the  EU  (e.g.  potable  alcohol  distillation,  by-products 
distillation, crisis distillation, etc.) have also decreased from around 33 Mio hl in 2006-2007 
to slightly over 26 Mio hl in 2009-2010 (-7 Mio hl (-21%)), mostly due to the decrease in EU 
subsidized  distillations.  Industrial  uses  of  wine  in  the  coming  years  can  be  estimated  at 
13 Mio hl  distilled  into  potable  alcohol  for  the  alcoholic  beverages  industry,  5-6 Mio hl 

EN 

3 

   EN 

 
distilled into alcohol for energy or other non-potable purposes (including the alcohol resulting 
from compulsory or voluntary delivery of by-products) and 3-4 Mio hl for vinegar. 

2.3. 

Trade 

2.3.1.  Exports / Imports 

The total EU exports to third countries have grown from 17.9 Mio hl in 2007 to 22.8 Mio hl in 
2011  (+27%).  The  total  export  value  of  EU  wines  increased  from  5.9 Billion €  in  2007  to 
8.1 Billion € in 2011 ( +36%). 

Exports represent now 15% of production, against less than 10% in 2007. While exports were 
stable from  2007  to 2009, important increases occurred in 2010 and 2011. The  main export 
destinations in 2011 were the USA (23%), Russia (18%) and China (10%). 65% of all wines 
exported  by  the  EU  to  third  countries  was  bottled  wine,  24%  was  bulk  wine,  and  10%  was 
sparkling wine. 

In parallel, the total EU imports from third countries have grown from 12.9 Mio hl in 2007 to 
13.6 Mio hl  in  2011  (+5%).  The  total  import  value  of  non-EU  wines  decreased  from 
2.7 Billion € in 2007 to 2.4 Billion € in 2011 (-12%). 

The  main  import  origins  in  2011  were  Australia  (26%),  Chile  and  South  Africa  (20% each) 
and the USA (19%). There was a very important decrease in the average import prices, due in 
particular to the shift from bottled to bulk imports: the latter counted for more than 58% of 
total  imports  in  2011,  against  45%  in  2007  which  makes  wines  in  the  lower  and  medium 
levels  much  more  competitive.  This  tendency  was  also  observed  in  the  intra-EU  trade.  In 
2011, imports into the United Kingdom and Germany represented 64% of total EU imports. 

2.3.2. 

Intra-EU 

Almost 33% of EU wines are traded between Member States. Taking into account that 15% of 
EU  wines  are  exported,  it  can  be  concluded  that  almost  50%  of  the  wines  are  consumed  in 
countries  different  from  the  ones  where  the  wines  were  produced.  This  shows  that  the  EU 
market balance depends on a well functioning internal market. 

Intra-EU  trade  has  increased  from  43 Mio hl  in  2007  to  49 Mio hl  in  2011  (+14%).  Bottled 
wines are slowly  losing ground (52% in 2007 down to 49% in 2011), while bulk wines are 
gaining market shares (39% in 2007 to 42% in 2011). This is consistent with trends in imports 
from third countries. Bottling wine at destination reduces substantially prices and is more and 
more used for lower medium quality wines. 

Intra-EU trade in value is stable at around 8.8 Billion €. 

2.3.3.  Trade balance 

The wine trade balance of the EU is positive and increased from 5 Mio hl in 2007 to 9 Mio hl 
in  2011  (+80%)  and,  in  value,  a  growth  can  be  observed  from  3.2 Billion €  in  2007  to 
5.7 Billion € in 2011 (+76%). 

There  is  a  significant  growth  for  still  bottled  wines  (4.7 Mio hl  to  9.3 Mio hl  (+100%))  and 
sparkling  wines  (1.2 Mio hl  to  2 Mio hl  (+80%)),  while  a  significant  decrease  occurred  for 
still bulk wines (-0.8 Mio hl to -2.4 Mio hl (-200%)). This shows that EU is very competitive 

EN 

4 

   EN 

 
for sparkling and bottled wines. However, EU bulk wines are loosing ground against foreign 
bulk wines. The share of exports in bulk has decreased over the period. 

Market  shares  of  EU wines  are  declining  in  countries  like  the  USA  and  Canada,  but  are 
progressing in China and Russia. 

2.3.4. 

Stocks and prices 

The  total  opening  wine  stocks  decreased  from  175 Mio hl  in  2009-2010  to  164 Mio hl  in 
2011-2012 (-6%). The 2011-2012 opening stocks represent approximately 100% of the total 
production.  This  recent  decrease  is  very  significant,  the  current  EU  stocks  being  the  lowest 
since the beginning of the 2004-2005 campaign.  

As regards prices for bulk wines, there is a significant increasing trend since the beginning of 
the  2010-2011  campaign  for  both  red  and  white  bulk  wines  in  the  three  main  producing 
Member  States.  The  most  recent  information  shows  that  prices  for  red  wines  vary  from 
4.5 €/%vol./hl (France, the highest since 2004) to  3.5 €/%vol./hl (Spain, also the highest since 
the late '90s). For white wines, the range is similar. 

However, the average price of sparkling wine has decreased over this period. 

Stock and prices are important indicators which sound situation of the EU wine market in the 
present. 

3. 

GRUBBING-UP SCHEME 

The grubbing-up scheme intended to remove non-competitive, low quality wines destined for 
subsidised distillations from the market. It has been a very succesful measure with 161 164 ha 
grubbed  up,  resulting  in  an  annual  reduction  of  the  EU  wine  production  of  around 
10.5 Mio hl. 

The grubbing-up scheme targeted wine producers who decided to grub up the totality of their 
vineyards (92 % of the beneficiairies) as well as producers of more than 55 years old (75% of 
the  beneficiairies).  At  the  end  of  the  three year  period,  1024,62 Mio €  were  spent  on  this 
measure. 

This 'one off' measure is considered as a success since it has helped non-competitive farmers 
to abandon the production of grapes and has also contributed to balance the EU wine market 
and to make the sector more competitive. 

During the same period (2008-2011) 111 364 ha were grubbed-up without support. 

4. 

NATIONAL SUPPORT PROGRAMMES 

The key element of the 2008 reform was the establishment of NSPs with specific budgetary 
envelopes to strengthen competitiveness of the EU wine sector. 18 Member States, were given 
the  possibility  to  use  their  allocated  budget  to  finance  measures  related  to  the  wine  sector, 
according  to  their  particular  needs,  from  a  given  menu  of  11 measures  in  total.  NSPs  last 
5 years and can be modified twice per year by shifting financial resources between measures 
or by modifying measures. 

EN 

5 

   EN 

 
NSPs  have  been  implemented  over  these  first  three  years  (2009-2011)  without  major 
problems.  They  ran  smoothly,  as  Member  States  have  already  familiarised  themselves  with 
the basic principles. The overall budget execution rate remained high during that period since 
Member States spent 97% of the total available budget of 2.8 billion €. 42% of the funds were 
used for the restructuring and conversion of vineyards, 12 % on potable alcohol distillation, 
10%  on  the  distillation  of  wine  by-products,  8.5%  for  promotion  of  EU  wines  in  third 
countries and 8.2% on the use of the concentrated grape must by wineries. 7% of the funds 
were transferred by the Member States from the SCMO to the SPS and about 6% were used 
for investments. 

For the remaining two years (2012-2013), the phasing-out of certain market measures such as 
aids for distillation and concentrated grape must should lead to the growth in importance of 
some other measures: promotion (from 8.5% to 17% of the total spending), investments (from 
6% to 15%), SPS (from 7% to 13%) and restructuring and conversion – the latter remaining 
the most important measure (about 40%). 

While  the  global  evaluation  of  the  NSPs  is  very  positive,  some  clarifications  and 
improvements need to be introduced for certain measures. In addition, specific provisions for 
the NSP of Croatia must be established. 

4.1. 

Restructuring and conversion measure 

The restructuring and conversion measure was not only the most important measure but it has 
also  increased  in  its  role  during  the  first  three  years:  1.153 billion €  were  spent  for  about 
50 000 ha  per  year  restructured  in  the  first  three  years,  most  of  them  in  France,  Spain  and 
Italy.  It  is  estimated  that  around  305 000 ha  (10%)  of  the  EU  wine-growing  areas  will  be 
restructured within the first five years of the reform. This measure has shown little impact on 
the production potential at EU level in terms of increased yields, but allows in particular for 
quality improvement, the adjustment of the production to market demand and a reduction of 
production  costs  through  the  development  of  mechanization  as  well  as  modernisation  of 
agricultural practices. It is essential to increase the competitiveness of the EU wine producers 
and the EU wine sector. 

The  Commission  reflects  on  better  defining  certain  operations,  in  particular  as  regards  the 
improvement  of  vineyard  management  techniques  and  "green"  operations  such  as  energy 
saving,  as  well  as  on  introducing  provisions  to  ensure  adequate  criteria  for  the  premium 
calculation. This could be done through the setting-up of guidelines. 

4.2. 

Promotion of wine on third country markets 

Promotion on third country markets has become widely used by the wine sector, supporting 
the growth in exports of wines with PDO/PGI in recent years. It must be mentioned, however, 
that the measure does not support actions for wines without GI, except varietal wines. Over 
the first three years, 236 Mio € were spent, and  with the phasing-out of some market measures 
(potable alcohol distillation, crisis distillation etc.), its budget share for 2012-2013 is expected 
to increase. The measure is used for the promotion of wines with PDO/PGI. The targeted third 
country markets are the USA, Canada, Japan and Switzerland. New developing markets such 
as  China,  Brazil  and  India  are  also  being  targeted  by  this  measure.  Several  actions  are 
concerned,  such  as  "public  relations,  promotional  or  advertisement  measures"  followed  by 
"information campaigns" and "participation at events, fairs or exhibitions". One main feature 

EN 

6 

   EN 

 
of this measure is that private companies can apply for the subsidy and that trademarks can be 
used in the promotion campaigns. 

It  should  be  noted  that  in  September 2010,  the  Commission,  following  the  request  from 
Member  States,  allowed  for  the  possibility  to  extend  the  length  of  promotion  actions  for  a 
given  beneficiary  in  a  given  third-country  from  three  to  five  years.  Moreover,  in 
November 2011, the Commission published a report on the implementation of this measure in 
the first two years, 2009 and 2010. 

The  Commission  is  considering  improving  the  operation  and  efficiency  of  this  measure  in 
particular  on  controls,  the  definition  of  the  priority  given  to  small  and  medium  companies, 
collective trademarks and on the eligibility of certain expenses. The need was also raised to 
ensure that this measure applies in practice to 'varietal wines' and non-GI wines as well as to 
examine the coherency between this measure and the new horizontal promotion rules. 

4.3. 

Investments 

The  main  objective  of  the  investments  measure  is  to  improve  the  economic  performance  of 
the micro, small and medium-sized enterprises. In total a relatively low amount of 167 Mio € 
was  spent  during  the  first  three  years  (France  (108.4 Mio €),  Germany  (30.6 Mio €)  and 
Austria  (14 Mio €)).  Eligible  measures  in clude:  the  construction,  acquisition,  including 
leasing,  or  improvement  of  immovable  property,  the  purchase  or  lease-purchase  of  new 
machinery  and  equipment,  including  computer  software  up  to  the  market  value  of  the  asset 
and other costs connected with the leasing contract. Simple replacement investments are not 
eligible. 

Despite the success of this new measure introduced in the SCMO regulation for wine, there is 
still  a  need  to  further  clarify  the  eligible  operations  within  the  measure.  Demarcation 
problems with similar operations in rural development programmes have caused delays in the 
implementation  of  this  measure  particularly  in  Italy  and  Spain.  Those  problems  could  be 
addressed through the setting-up of guidelines. 

4.4. 

Transfer to the single payment scheme 

Transfer of the funds to the SPS reached 16% of the total funds in 2011, notably due to the 
Spanish  decision  to  compensate  the  elimination  of  the  potable  alcohol  distillation  measure. 
The funds once transferred by Member States to the SPS cannot be made available again for 
the  wine  envelopes  i.e.  they  reduce  correspondingly  the  budget  available  for  the  national 
support  programmes  in  subsequent  years.  In  total,  190 Mio €  were  transferred  irrevocably 
from the SCMO to SPS from 2009 to 2011. Spain transferred 32.6% of its budget to the SPS. 
Luxembourg, Malta and the United Kingdom transferred their entire envelopes. This measure 
will  disappear  from  the  NSP.  A  proposal  for  amendment  of  the  SCMO  on  this  subject 
foresees  the  possibility  for  Member  States  to  decide  in  2013  (for  budgetary  year:  2015)  to 
definitively transfer part or all of their envelopes to the SPS. 

4.5. 

By-product distillation 

The support is granted to distillers  for distillation of by-products of wine-making  (e.g. marc 
and  lees).  It  is  supposed  to  guarantee  the  quality  of  wine  by  avoiding  an  over-pressing  of 
grapes,  which  is  prohibited  by  the  EU  legislation,  and  to  preserve  the  environment.  The 
alcohol resulting from this measure can be used exclusively for industrial or energy purposes 
to avoid distortions of competition. In total 267 Mio € were spent  on by-product distillation 

EN 

7 

   EN 

 
during  the  three  years,  namely  by  Spain  (95.3 Mio €),  France  (92.8  Mio €)  and  Italy 
(66 Mio €). 

– 

This measure is only used in five Member States and no such policy exists in other 
wine  producing  countries.  It  is  often  presented  as  a  measure  essential  for  wine 
distilleries.  In consequence,  it  seems  opportune  to  evaluate  whether  the  measure 
should  continue  in  its  current  form  or  whether  it  could  be  reoriented  to  support 
wineries or wine-growers themselves, taking also into account the decreasing outlets 
for  alcohol.  It  should  be  noted  that  some  regions  notably  in  France,  are  exploring 
possibilities  of  using  the  by-products  in  alternative  ways  (e.g.  composting,  biogas 
production). 

4.6. 

Other measures 

In total 71.5 Mio € were spent for the harv est insurance during 2009-2011. As regards green 
harvesting, 41.5 Mio € were paid over this peri od and concerned 24 000 ha in Italy, Slovenia 
and Cyprus. 

The  limited  success  of  the  green  harvesting  is  due  to  the  fact  that  the  total  destruction  or 
removal of grapes bunches shall be made at a immature stage, which might be risky for grape 
growers. As regards harvest insurance, similar national tools already exist. 

4.7. 

Phased-out measures 

The role of the three measures that expire in 2012 (use of concentrated grape must, potable 
alcohol  distillation  and  crisis  distillation)  has  decreased  considerably.  The phasing-out  of 
these subsidised measures can be considered very successful, as it had no negative impact on 
the balance of the wine sector. 

Crisis  distillation  continued  to  be  extensively  used  in  2009  mostly  by  France  and  Italy, 
decreased in 2010 and 2011 and ceased in 2012. 

5. 

QUALITY POLICY 

The  new  quality  policy  applies  since  1 August 2009  and  concerns  PDO,  PGI  and TT. 
As regards  PDO/PGI,  the  new  rules  are  fully  in  line  with  the  WTO-TRIPS  Agreement  and 
coherent  with  agricultural  products  and  foodstuffs  PDO/PGI  regime.  The modernisation  of 
this  policy  was  considered  essential  to  harmonise  EU  rules  and  to  adapt  wine  products  to 
market demand. The wine sector is quite particular in that a high proportion of the production 
is under PDO or PGI and the reputation and quality of wine is very often linked to the region 
of production, in particular in wine producing Member States. The new policy should enhance 
the consolidation of quality wines with PDO and PGI and their protection against usurpation 
in  Europe  and  in  third  countries.  An  essential  task  of  the  EU  within  the  reform  was  to 
consolidate the list of the protected EU PDO and PGI wines. 

Quality  policy  should  not  be  restricted  to  the  above  products'  segmentation  and  should  also 
cover  branded  wines  and  varietal  wines  since  they  are  recognised  by  consumers  as  quality 
products. 

EN 

8 

   EN 

 
5.1. 

Protected designation of origin and Protected geographical indication 

By  31  December  2011,  Member  States  communicated  to  the  Commission  1561 PDO/PGI 
(1122 PDO  and  439 PGI)  product  specifications  with  the  view  to  be  examined  by  the 
Commission services by the end of 2014. This corresponds to the existing wine names which 
were  protected  by  the  Community  by  virtue  of  Council  Regulation  (EC)  No 1493/19995.  It 
has to be noted that 143 wine names, for which no product specifications were submitted in 
due time, lost protection in the Union. 

The  first  scrutiny  of  the  received  product  specifications  shows  that  changes  are  needed  in 
most of the files, to be in line with EU rules. 

With  a  view  to  simplify  and  enhance  EU  legislation  on  PDO/PGI,  as  well  as  to  reduce 
administrative burdens: 

– 

– 

the  EU  PDO/PGI  register  could  be  opened  also  to  third  countries'  GI  which  are 
protected  in  the  EU  by  virtue  of  an  international  agreement  to  which  the  EU  is  a 
party; 

rules on relationships between PDO/PGI and prior trade marks should be harmonised 
with  the  horizontal  rules  by  referring  to  the  TRIPS  Agreement  cut-off  date  of 
1 January 1996. 

5.2. 

Protected Traditional terms 

TT  is  a  peculiarity  of  the  wine  sector,  by  which  certain  names  traditionally  associated  with 
certain PDO wines are protected. 

359 TT are protected in the EU: 100 TT as national synonyms to PDO/PGI (e.g. "appellation 
d'origine contrôlée" in France; "Prädikatswein" in Germany or "Vino de la Tierra" in Spain, 
etc.)  and  259 TT  as  quality  descriptors  (e.g.  "reserva",  "château",  "tawny",  etc.).  Since 
1 August 2009, 22 new applications have been received by the Commission; 7 from Member 
States and 15 from third countries (2 from Argentina and 13 from the USA). 

However, since TT are not industrial property rights like PDO/PGI and refer more to labelling 
particulars, rules on TT should be reviewed, in particular as regards the scope of protection 
and control rules. 

6. 

LABELLING AND PRESENTATION 

Labelling  and  presentation  provisions  have  been  largely  simplified  and  harmonised  among 
different wine products. They now give more flexibility for the EU wine sector, in particular 
as regards production of wines without PDO/PGI bearing vintage year and vine variety names 
('varietal wines'). EU varietal wine production represents in 2011 4.6 Mio hl (68% from Spain 
and 20% from France), which proves the importance of this outlet, both for wine growers and 
consumers. However, several Member States are reluctant to develop their varietal wines, by 
excluding  their  most  relevant  varieties  in  order  to  preserve  them  for  the  PDO  wines.  The 

5 

OJ L 179, 14.7.1999, p. 1. 

EN 

9 

   EN 

 
                                                 
Commission also notes that the USA restriction on the vintage labelling is also affecting EU 
exports of varietal wines to that important market. 

In  order  to  reinforce  this  new  outlet,  a  new  wine  product  category  "varietal  wine"  could  be 
added to Annex XIb to Regulation (EC) No 1234/2007. 

As  regards  the  indication  on  wine  labels  of  the  wine  grape  variety,  a  lack  of  coherency 
remains in EU legislation in particular for wine grape variety names which coincide with EU 
PDO/PGI. In addition, no scientific data exists on differences between Vitis and Vitis vinifera 
wine  grape  varieties  (e.g.  some  vine  varieties  can  be  classified  as  a  Vitis  or  a  Vitis  vinifera 
depending  on  the  Member  States).  With  a  view  to  responding  to  these  concerns,  it  is 
necessary to consider the modification of the rules applying to wine grape varieties. 

7. 

OENOLOGICAL PRACTICES 

The modification of the rules on oenological practices was one of the great achievements of 
the  wine  reform,  providing  flexibility  as  regards  the  authorisation  of  new  oenological 
practices in order to adapt the EU sector to the scientific and technical developments and to 
permit EU wines to compete with third country wines in the world market. 

Besides, in order to meet the international standards in oenological practices as recommended 
by the OIV and to provide EU producers with the new possibilities available to third country 
producers, new oenological practices had to be authorised in the EU under the conditions of 
use  defined  by  the  OIV  (use  of  enzymatic  preparations,  acidification  by  means  of  electro-
membranary treatment, use of chitosan and chitin-glucan, maximum sulphur dioxide content 
of certain specific wines, changes in the requirements for dimethylcarbonate, or clarification 
for certain liqueur wines)6. 

There is a growing demand for wine products with reduced alcoholic strength and EU wine 
producers  are  quite  interested  by  this  new  possible  segmentation  of  the  offer.  Up  to  now, 
some Member States' legislations (e.g. Austria, Germany, etc.) have regulated the use of wine 
denominations for those products. In order to avoid any fragmentation of the EU market, the 
EU should develop a single and uniform policy in this respect, by introducing and promoting 
new  grapevine  product  categories  ("de-alcoholised  wine"  and  "partially  de-alcoholised 
wine"), in line with the recently adopted resolutions of the OIV on de-alcoholised wines. 

The  implementation  of  the  reform  has  also  shown  that  EU rules  on  oenological  practices 
should be more harmonised and simplified in order to guarantee fair competition between EU 
wine producers and transparency for consumers. In particular, 

– 

there  are  several  minimum  actual  alcoholic  strengths  depending  on  grapevine 
products categories (e.g.: 4.5% vol. for PDO/PGI wines, 6% vol. for quality aromatic 
sparkling  wines,  7% vol.  for  semi-sparkling  wine,  etc.),  whereas  the  OIV  only 
establishes  a  unique  minimum  actual  alcoholic  strength  of  8.5 % vol.,  with  the 
flexibility to be reduced to 7 % vol.; 

6 

OJ L 19, 21.1.2011, p. 1. 
OJ L 103, 13.4.2012, p. 38. 

EN 

10 

   EN 

 
                                                 
 
– 

the same incoherence applies to maximum total alcoholic strengths depending on the 
zones (15% vol. in zones A, 20% vol. in zones C and for some PGI wines in zone B 
and  no  maximum  total  alcoholic  strength  for  PDO  wines  obtained  without 
enrichment). 

Finally,  rules  on  over-pressing  of  grapes,  including  its  control,  as  well  as  on  the  minimum 
quantity  of  alcohol  contained  in  by-products  (Annex XVb  of  the  SCMO  Regulation)  and 
distillation of by-products could be simplified. 

8. 

CONCLUSIONS 

The  2008  wine  reform  aimed  primarily  at  "increasing  of  the  competitiveness  of  EU  wine 
producers". 

The  Commission  considers  that  the  2008  wine  reform  has  been  implemented  successfully. 
The removal of market intervention measures has occurred without major disturbances. The 
EU vineyard surfaces and production of wine have continued to adapt to demand over the last 
years.  According  to  the  latest  data,  the  market  is  quite  stable,  prices  have  improved  and  in 
spite of a continuous decrease of internal consumption, there is no evidence of the existence 
of structural surplus in the wine sector. The grubbing-up scheme and the NSP have been fully 
implemented.  161 164 ha  were  grubbed  up  and  around  305 000 ha  restructured  with 
EU funds. Other important measures are being widely used, like promotion and investment. 

The  latest  trade  information  available  shows  that  exports  to  third  countries  have  increased 
significantly since 2007 and amount now to over 22 Mio hl (8.1 Billion € - the average export 
value  per hl  having  improved).  The  first months of 2012 have shown even a slight increase 
compared  to  the  equivalent  period  in  2011.  While  the  penetration  on  new  markets  is 
impressive,  market  shares  in  other  foreign  markets  and  even  in  some  Member  States  are 
decreasing due to the competition of third country wines. 

To  conclude,  the  Commission  considers  that  the  continuation  of  the  wine  reform  will 
contribute  to  enhance  the  competitiveness  of  the  wine  sector.  The  Commission  will  further 
examine  possible  legislative  improvements  with  a  view  to  clarify  and  detail  some  specific 
issues,  in  particular  as  far  as  the  NSP,  the  quality  policy,  the  labelling  and  wine-making 
practices are concerned. 

EN 

11 

   EN