The agriculture minister of the Junta de Andalucia, Luis
Planas, is today paying his first official visit to the Consejo Regulador in Jerez,
where he will meet Consejo officials as well as representatives of the various
parts of the trade. He will gain first-hand information on the current situation
and the trade’s preoccupations, one of the biggest of which is their request
for a change to the rules on minimum stocks required to sell wine on the open
market.
The three year transition period for the adoption of the new
Reglamento (Rules for Sherry production) which sets a minimum of 500 butts of
stock, expires on the 29th May. If this is not modified, it will
make life very difficult for the small bodegas, especially those who have
recently incorporated with the Consejo Regulador, and who are not selling large
volumes, concentrating instead on quality. If the minimum stock situation is
not reduced to 50 butts, many will be forced to leave the Consejo. The 500 butt
minimum was set for fear of new businesses speculating, but has proved to be
excessive. It is hoped the modification can be achieved before the new
Reglamento is set in stone by Brussels.
Separately, officials at the Consejo will be asking for
increased funding for the promotion of the wines, specifically to the same
level as the bodegas are increasing their contribution. Currently, they are
paying 1 centimo per litre of wine commercialised which gives a figure of
425,000 euros. Along with contributions from ICEX and Extenda, the promotional pot
will reach somewhere between 650,000 and 700,000 euros. Not a lot.
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