Brussels, 31/08/2012 (Agence Europe) - After the meeting with representatives from the wine-growing sector, at the Ministry of Agriculture on Thursday 30 August, Stéphane Le Foll, the French minister, announced the creation of a joint platform composed of France, Germany, Spain and Italy, to take up the matter of abolishing vine planting rights in the wine sector.
The minister thus hopes to give momentum to and have more clout in Community discussions on the matter by bringing in other producer countries. The platform will address the Commission before the next meeting of the high level group on 21 September this year. “The lack of any regulatory mechanism of production potential, and hence of supply, would be detrimental to the sector and would jeopardise quality supply”, Stéphane Le Foll said.
The fate to be reserved to vineyard planting rights is a highly controversial matter within the EU. Fifteen countries are calling for the system to be kept in place. The European Commission's proposal on reform provides for abolition of the regime as of 1 January 2016 (with the possibility for a country to keep it until 31 December 2018). The European Commission expects concrete solutions to be tabled by the high level group, so as to prepare a proposal that would be negotiated in parallel to the reform of Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). (LC/transl.jl)