Europe’s wine harvest fell this year as top producers like Italy and Spain grappled with challenging weather conditions.
A dry winter, hailstorms, floods, and a rainy spring season damaged vineyards in key wine regions, according to the Copa-Cogeca unions that represent European farmers. Italy lost its place as Europe’s top producer for the first time in seven years after a 12% drop in output.
Spanish vineyards suffered badly, too, as did producers in Austria, Greece, Croatia and Slovakia. Germany also saw a small decline, though it was mainly related to inflation and high production costs throughout the supply chain, the unions said. Output in the European Union is estimated to be 5.5% lower than the five-year average.
France became the region’s top wine producer, after it was one of few countries — together with Portugal — that saw its harvest increase.
At the same time, Europe is still grappling with a buildup of too much wine, after a strong harvest last year and inflation that has crimped consumer spending. Those factors have weighed on producers’ incomes.
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