CEEV releases its report highlighting the economic importance of the EU wine sector

Strasbourg, 23 November 2016 – On the occasion of its annual General Assembly held this year in Strasbourg, CEEV launched today its brand new report European Wines: a solid pillar of the EU economy.

“It is worth remembering that the European Wine sector is a strong leader throughout the world, not only in terms of production, but also in terms of consumption and in terms of exports. This publication aimed at highlighting the economic and social importance of the EU wine sector, which – unlike its cultural and patrimonial value – is often ill-known and underestimated”, said Jean-Marie Barillère, President of CEEV.

The launching event, organized with the support of the European Parliament’s Intergroup on Wine, Spirits and Quality Foodstuffs”, was attended by an impressive number of MEPs from 9 different Member States, as well as representatives from the European Commission and more than 30 representatives from the EU Wine sector.

As the representative professional body of the EU industry and trade in still wines, sparkling wines, liqueur wines, aromatised wines and other vine products, CEEV aimed at recalling, through this publication, the significant contribution of the European Wine sector to the recovery of the EU economy.

The EU Wine sector at a glance – Key 2015 facts & figures:

• The EU Wine sector is definitely a force to be reckoned with at global level, as it represents:
  • 45% of the global vineyard surface
  • 63% of the global wine production in volume, and 70% in value – with Italy, France and Spain as leading producers
  • 52% of the global wine consumption
• The EU Wine sector is the world leader of trade: with almost € 10 billion of EU wine exported within the EU and € 9,8 billion exported outside the EU.
• With a positive trade balance of € 7,2 billion for the EU, international trade is of course a major driving force for our sector; the top 10 EU Wine export markets being US, Switzerland, China, Canada, Japan, Hong-Kong, Russia, Singapore, Norway and Australia.
• The market value of the EU wine is estimated to € 100 billion.
• The EU Wine sector accounts for 3 million direct full-time jobs in the EU, most of them in rural areas, where little other economic alternative exists.
• In addition to its strong link with the Tourism and Hospitality sectors all over the European territory, the EU Wine sector also brings a significant indirect contribution to other economic sectors involved in the Wine value chain: grapevine nursery, specific agricultural machinery, oak cask, glass bottle, cork stoppers or oenological substances.
• The EU wine sector is intricately linked to its terroir and cannot be relocated, hence the importance of the 459 EU Wine PGIs and 1.291 PDOs protecting our noble products.

“Our industry is committed to playing a key role in the economic, social and environmental sustainability of European regions. We want to continue to invest and create added value for our national and EU economies. We want to maintain our contribution to the EU economy with, among others, our impressive positive trade balance” said Dr Ignacio Sánchez Recarte, Secretary General of CEEV.

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European Wine: a solid pillar of the European Union economy