The sector of came Spanish is in a serious crisis This particularly affects those who are dedicated to preparing the red. In this sense, Joaquín Vizcaíno, wine director of the Coordinator of Farmers and Breeders Organizations (Coag), tells OKDIARIO that producers are asking for more flexibility European Union spending funds on issues that are not intended to solve the vineyard restructuring.
“We ask the European Union for flexibility in the funds that we have allocated as a sector to spend them on what we consider,” the representative explains. “It should be noted that the Spanish wine sectoronly in exportgenerates 3 billion euros,” he reveals.
For this reason, the official assures that it is a “very important sector” that deserves “the support of the European Union for investments.” “What we want are mechanisms that help us adapt, accept supply and demand“, sentence.
And the wine market has been changing in recent years. Farmers who are dedicated to this product are seeing very pronounced changes in demand that are forcing them to change the way you workHowever, these changes require investments that, in many cases, are too high for farms.
The wine crisis
“Red wine prices are very low and we understand that they should not be, because the drop in consumption does not reflect such a disparate situation. However, whites are offered at the same price,” says Vizcaíno. “There is more demand, but the warehouses are empty“They should have much higher prices than they have now,” he laments.
“There is less actions in the cellar than last year and, however, they are giving lower prices than last year, so there should be at least continuity, if not a little upwards, because the situation being bad, it is better than the previous year,” he explains.
In other words, demand is decreasing, as is supply, so farmers do not understand how the two movements do not compensate each other, causing prices to remain the same. In addition, the representative assures that many farms “sell at a loss”, which would go against the Food Chain Act.
“Last year there was very little harvest, so this year the market should be located elsewhere. Furthermore, we expect a harvest this year below average. If the average in Spain is 43 million hectolitres, it is expected 39 million. That is to say, below average. We came, in addition to a harvest, the previous year, which was extraordinarily low,” reiterates the Coag delegate.
The situation of the sector is present in the demands of agricultural organizations. In fact, the Union of small farmers and breeders (UPA) assures that Spain is in a “serious crisis” of wine: “We can resist the assaults of the climate changebut not from the market.
“In the oil or nut sector, we talk in euros per kilo of olive and of pistachio or almond, but in the vineyard they talk about pesetas per kilo of grapes for something to appear. It is unworthy. A kilo is worth about 30 cents and it takes about a kilo and a half to make one. bottle of wine”says a UPA representative.
Furthermore, the UPA warns of an “alarming decline” in consumption that also has its impact on the “stifling lack of profitability”. “A quarter of what we consume stays in Spain, the rest goes abroad. But on both sides of the border“Consumption has fallen sharply since the outbreak of the Covid-19 crisis,” he notes.
The association points out that demand for new vineyard plantations has fallen by 45% in just one year. Furthermore, the UPA shows that there is “discontent” among those working in the sector: “In the field of Ribeira SacraGalicia: Producers mobilize following industry announcement not to harvest grapes this year.
However, Vizcaíno assures that he does not expect that beautiful mobilizations nationals of the sector, because to have a greater impact they would have to join forces with the rest of the farmers and lobby together, which is not excluded.
