Brussels,12 November 2019
During an EFOW event sponsored by MEPs Mr. Dacian Cioloş (President Renew Europe), Mrs. Anne Sander (Quaestor, EPP) and Mr. Paolo De Castro (AGRI Coordinator, S&D), numerous European wine appellations called for the adoption of an ambitious CAP reform to strengthen the wine appellations which are the backbone of European viticulture.
EFOW’s members stressed their attachment to the sector’s specific tools, in particular the vine planting authorization scheme. They also emphasised the urgent need to implement a European legislative framework to meet the producers and consumers’ expectations with regard to labelling. Finally, they called on the European institutions to make the best use of trade and promotion policies to help the sector cope with US retaliatory measures and Brexit.
Mr. Cioloş, Mrs. Sander and Mr. De Castro underlined the need for a strong European policy to support the long-term success of the wine sector. Mrs. Irène Tolleret, member of the Committee on Agriculture, also took the floor to invite her fellow Members to support the creation of the Wine Intergroup, a very important forum to discuss the opportunities and challenges facing the wine sector.
On this occasion, the President of EFOW, Mr. Bernard Farges, recalled the importance of discussions on wine issues and of a rapid adoption of the future CAP. He stressed that “the European Parliament remains an ally of quality viticulture. The new parliament has fully understood the challenges of our sector and is ready to meet them. Now, the Council must follow suit. We encourage governments to speed up their negotiations on the CAP reform and we count on the Member States to act in concert to defend the interests of the sector“.
