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Extreme weather conditions including drought, frost, heat and hail in main European regions where wine is produced is the cause of current global wine shortage fears after 2017 global wine production is reported to have dropped to a ‘historic low’ according to the industry’s body, The International Organisation of Vine and Wines.
Worldwide production of wine is said to have dropped by 8.2% in 2017.
Italy has remained the biggest global producer of wine despite a 23% drop in production this year. The second biggest producer of wine is France which saw a 19% fall and Spain’s wine production was down 15%.
The smaller 2017 harvest will result in a ‘tighter global supply’ and rising bulk wine prices for the upcoming year, especially for Italian and Spanish wines.
However, it’s not all bad across Europe as there has also been a rise in wine production compared to 2016 in countries such as Portugal, Hungary, Austria and Romania. The wine producing regions in the United States fared better than Europe. The body warned the prospective figures did not take into account any potential consequences of fires in a key wine-growing part of California.
The grape harvest was more successful in South America and Argentina recorded an increase in production for this year after a bad harvest last year. Australia and South Africa were also among those that saw a rise.
Wine production is measured by hectolitre, with each one being the equivalent of 133 regular wine bottles.
The International Organization of Vine and Wines have stated that they do not have definitive figures on wine consumption as of yet but it is estimated to be within 240.5 to 245.8 millions of hectoliters.
The story was originally published the Debrief
