Imported wine in one out of six glasses

According to estimates, the quality of grape produced this year will be good, but its quantity will be less than usual. Wine production will just be sufficient to cover domestic demand. Csaba Horváth, general secretary of the National Council of Winery Societies, believes that as a result of warm weather and sufficient rainfall at the right time, we will see some nice wines this year. This year’s wine production is expected to be below 3 million hectolitres. At the same time, import is expected to exceed half a million hectolitres. During the past ten years, exports of Hungarian wine have shrunk by 50 per cent, though this trend seems to be changing. The domestic market is being polarised, with increasing demand for cheap imported wines from Italy and for wines of special quality as well. The increase of import is expected to continue, which is bad news for domestic wineries which have been forced to focus on the domestic market following their failure to enter export markets. At present, there are 22 wine producing regions in Hungary. Domestic per capita consumption is estimated to be around 30 litres. EU plans for the reform of the wine business published in 2006 have been subject to heated debate for months. The most important elements of the Hungarian response to the proposals have been outlined. The present process of reform is only favourable for Hungary, if the use of sugar to boost alcohol content will continue to be permitted and subsidies will be distributed on a territorial basis.