Phytoplasma and market changes are the most pressing challenges in winemaking, according to experts

According to Csaba Gyuricza, rector of the Hungarian University of Agricultural and Life Sciences (MATE), the demand for alcohol-free and reduced-alcohol wines presents researchers and universities with new tasks, as does the appearance of phytoplasma, which raises both pathological and entomological issues.

At the event, the rector announced that after several years of preparation, a joint master’s degree program will be launched with the State University of Uzbekistan, which is the most important viticulture and winemaking institution in Central Asia.

MATE also announces courses that external interested parties can attend together with university students and receive a certificate upon successful completion.

In addition to viticulture and winemaking courses, the institution may later organize agricultural and food industry programs, he indicated.

János Frittmann, president of the National Council of Mountain Communities (HNT), believes that many people still do not take phytoplasma seriously, although the disease, called the phylloxera of the 21st century, cannot be eliminated for the time being.

Containment is impossible without the cooperation of producers, the main breeding grounds for the spread are uncultivated home gardens and abandoned plantations, he said.

The head of the interest group also urged a quick response to the transformation of the market, because in his opinion, imported products may gain more ground if the domestic supply does not keep pace with the popularity of prosecco-type wines.