Non-alcoholic wines seen as key to reviving Europe's declining wine industry

euronews (in English)

To counter declining wine consumption, experts encourage European producers to explore the growing market for low and non-alcoholic wines, offering economic potential.

Transcript

00:00Hi, I'm Stephan Grobe.

00:16Enjoying wine is part of Europe's cultural history, yet it has become fashionable to

00:20drink less, especially among younger generations.

00:26That's why a group of experts is encouraging the European wine industry to embrace the

00:31growing market of low and non-alcoholic wine.

00:36It might be the key to stop the negative economic trend.

00:40EU citizens account for roughly half of global wine consumption, drinking 107 million hectolitres

00:47in 2023.

00:48But that consumption has been in decline for many years.

00:53Between 2010 and 2020, EU consumption fell by almost a quarter.

00:58This decline is expected to continue, albeit at a slower rate.

01:03The reasons for this decline, according to experts, are health concerns and changing

01:08drinking patterns.

01:09Thus, the idea of offering consumers low or non-alcoholic options.

01:14Now, would people appreciate this?

01:17I don't really like the idea of trying to be a wine monkey.

01:21I'd rather drink something completely different, like infusions, things like that.

01:25I don't know.

01:26But in any case, I prefer to drink wine when I want to drink wine and something alcoholic.

01:32And something else if I want to drink something else.

01:33However, it's true that there aren't many alternatives with complex things and not too sweet, especially.

01:39I've tried several products, I've never been satisfied, I've never found anything

01:44that suited me.

01:45I've always been a bit disappointed.

01:47The desire to open this first non-alcoholic winery in France is born from a personal approach.

01:52Since we've been around for three years, we've seen the supply of decoupled non-alcoholic wines

01:56double.

01:57From what we hear from our customers, that the fact that wines are now very strong,

02:01at 13, 14, 15 degrees, doesn't really correspond to the use anymore.

02:05It's too strong.

02:06So we're not going to drink it at noon, in the evening, to drink several glasses.

02:09You still have to be strong and it's hard to drink several times a week, etc.

02:13A drop in the consumption of wine.

02:16Well, I have no idea.

02:18My thought would be the opposite, even.

02:22Maybe it has to do with the price.

02:25But if it's in wine in general, it doesn't make sense because we have very cheap wines.

02:30When I drink alcohol, it's also a bit to relax and I think, I don't know,

02:34only if I liked the taste a lot and if it was much better than the alcoholic wine, maybe.

02:39But if I didn't do that, I don't think so.

02:42People don't have the purchasing power to drink good wine.

02:47Maybe that's the reason.

02:49Maybe because the new generations don't appreciate it as much as the older ones.

02:55So, eventually, the new generations appreciate it less and that's it.

02:59Let's bring in Gerardo Fortuna now, who has covered the topic of non-alcoholic wine

03:04for Euronews in the past.

03:07Last year, the EU Commission established a reflection group

03:11to study the situation of the wine industry.

03:15What was the purpose of that mission?

03:17Clearly to address the current challenges that the wine sector is facing,

03:23such as extreme weather conditions,

03:25how to adapt to a changing climate and changing environment,

03:29but also shifts in the consumer taste

03:32and, of course, a particular tough situation for international trade

03:37that is leading the export of wine down,

03:42as well as the domestic consumption is also not particularly good at the moment.

03:47And what were the main recommendations?

03:49The main recommendation is also how to better address

03:53the shift in the consumer taste.

03:56Not only when it comes to less expensive wines,

04:00the market segment of cheap wines,

04:02but also when it comes to the change in the...

04:05when it comes to the non- or low-alcoholic wine,

04:09the so-called no-law wines,

04:12which are a new segment also for emerging economies.

04:16And how did European wine producers react?

04:19There's still some sort of resistance from the winemaker in Europe

04:25because it's perceived that something alien

04:28to the traditional way of making wines.

04:31But at the same time, we're having more competition

04:35from market operators outside the traditional wine sector

04:39that are threatening to enter this market.

04:43In a sense, they're considering how important it is to having,

04:47for instance, a new legislation when it comes to no-law wines.

04:51There's a growing market potential for European producers

04:55as the size of the global market for non-alcoholic wine

04:59will grow from almost €8 billion today

05:02to €14 billion by the end of 2031.

05:05That represents an annual growth rate of more than 10%.

05:09The biggest markets are the US, Canada, Australia and India.

05:15It seems that proud EU wine producers

05:18are finally coming around to the idea of non-alcoholic wine.

05:22That's a significant shift compared to just a few years ago.

05:26Yet balancing traditional wine interests with emerging opportunities

05:30is also a challenge for European policymakers.

05:34Joining me now is Eric Zargachomo,

05:37the Vice-Chairman of the Agriculture Committee of the European Parliament.

05:40Welcome to the program.

05:42The beer sector has already introduced non-alcoholic products

05:46some time ago.

05:48Why do you think the wine sector has such a hard time innovating?

05:53I believe that wine has always innovated.

05:56The wine we drink is not what my grandparents drank.

05:59But today, there are a number of products

06:01that are coming onto the market,

06:03notably non-alcoholic wines.

06:05And today, we have possibilities

06:08in relation to community rules

06:10to be able to de-alcoholize.

06:12We can also limit the evolution

06:14of the alcohol content of wine

06:16because of climate change,

06:18the alcohol content tends to increase.

06:21And for the market,

06:23we think it's better to lower it.

06:26How can the EU facilitate

06:28the marketing of non-alcoholic wine?

06:32You know, there are a lot of programs

06:34to promote products

06:36around the world by Europe.

06:38And I think that non-alcoholic products

06:40as well as wines in general

06:42should be able to benefit

06:44from all these promotion programs,

06:46from all the products of excellence

06:48of the European territories.

06:50But how will the legislative framework

06:52change with the emergence

06:54of non-alcoholic wine?

06:56I think it's one more element

06:58in the range.

07:00It doesn't fundamentally change

07:02the economy of wine.

07:04It's a possibility

07:07of more.

07:09We already had the possibility

07:11to make distillations,

07:13to make grape juices.

07:15So it's one more element

07:17that allows to absorb

07:19a part of the overproduction.

07:21But it's not a magic wand.

07:23So all the other means

07:25of resolving crises,

07:27of limiting volumes,

07:29we will have them.

07:31And in particular,

07:33the plan of extraction

07:35It's always difficult

07:37to give up long cherished traditions

07:39and embrace change.

07:41But overall, non-alcoholic wine

07:43can be a flavorful and healthy alternative

07:45for those looking to enjoy

07:47drinks without alcohol.

07:49And if European winemakers

07:51get fully on board,

07:53this can also be a powerful

07:55business opportunity

07:57in the years to come.

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