RESEARCH ON THE WINE MARKET IN THE EUROPEAN UNION

Abstract

Europe provides the finest wines in the world and it has an impressive capacity in terms of selection range. This paper covers the evolution of the wine market in the EU, in the interval 2000 – 2011. During the researched interval, the European Union filled the world leader position in terms of the areas cultivated with grape vine, on the one hand, and on the other hand in terms of the wine production obtained. In this paper, we analyse several specific indicators, among which: the wine production, imports, exports, consumption. The main wine producing countries are France, Italy, Spain, accounting for approximately 80% of the overall wine production. Regarding the intra community trade, we must point out that it remains at a high level, but we notice a decrease in terms of both amounts and value. Wine consumption decreased due to the global economic crisis, but also due to the campaigns aimed at reducing alcohol consumption.