Global oversupply affecting all wine regions & markets

World oversupply of wine is affecting all wine regions.

China demand for Australian wine may have fallen of a cliff edge in 2020 but the UK has seen Australian exports fall by 20 million litres and the US down by 13 million litres, according to ABARES (Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics and Sciences).

The fall internationally is seen in data from the International Organisation of Vine and Wine which show that global consumption has lagged behind production of wine since at least 1995.

California is currently experiencing “one of the worst imbalances in demand and supply seen in 30 years” said Stuart Spencer, executive director of the Lodi Winegrape Commission in the state’s Central Valley.

International drinking habits are changing, as well as demand for red wines dropping and demand for white wines holding up. In Spain, there is an oversupply of Rioja reds, according to José Luis Benítez, director general at industry group Federación Española del Vino, while demand for white wine is high.

The French government originally allocated €200 million (US$216 million) to help farmers nationwide pull up vineyards and send their wine to be converted into ethanol, promising each farmer €75 per hectolitre. Bordeaux, the major red-wine-producing region, received additional funding to pull up 9,500 hectares of land. After farmer protests in January, grape farmers won a further €150 million for uprooting vines and planting alternative crops.