With rising bottle prices and falling purchasing power, global consumption of wine and champagne has fallen in 2022, the International Wine Organization said Thursday.
Wine exports, however, broke a new value record in 2022, up 9%, despite logistical difficulties, which reduced volumes shipped by 5% to 107 million hectoliters.
15% increase in the prices of exported bottles
Under the effect of a 15% increase in the average price of exported bottles, shipments reached 37.6 billion euros, “the highest figure ever recorded,” according to the organization’s annual report.
After a rebound in 2021, linked to the gradual lifting of sanitary restrictions against Covid-19, “the war in Ukraine and the associated energy crisis, as well as disruptions in global supply chains, have caused an increase in costs production and distribution, said the International Wine Organization.
The costs of gas or glass have skyrocketed for producers, as has the price of bottles, which has translated into a drop in the volumes consumed. They fell to 232 million hectoliters, 1% less than in 2021.
World inflation remains at very high levels, and “wine prices are not going to drop” in the coming months, warned the general director of the International Wine Organization, Pau Roca, at a press conference.
High-end wine withstands the shock
High-end wines, appreciated by a wealthy clientele, withstand difficulties.
Overall, wine consumption has been declining “at a steady pace” since 2018, driven in particular by a steady decline in Chinese consumption that fell 16% in 2022.
World wine production, estimated at 258 million hectoliters in 2022, is better than expected, with a drop of just 1%.
“A number of adverse weather events (spring frosts, hail, excessive heat and drought) were observed throughout 2022,” the International Wine Organization said. However, “the absence of serious grape diseases and the arrival of the rains at the end of summer compensated” for the vagaries of the weather.
Italy, France and Spain once again produce more than half of the wine sold in the world this year.
Source: BFM TV
