Italian wine exports amounted to €5.6 billion in 2016, up by 4.3% on the previous year, according to data from the Italian Wine Union.
The leading export market, the US, saw a 5.5% growth in value, surpassing €1.35 billion. Sparkling wine, which grew by 31% in value and 24% by volume, has been leading this growth.
In view of the potential of the US market, the Italian Wine Union has teamed up with the Italian Institute for Foreign Trade (ICE) on a promotional campaign that will see €20 million invested over the next three years.
The second largest market for Italian wine exports, Germany, grew in 2016 by +1.7% in value (€977 million) and +0.5% by volume (5.56 million hectolitres). Germany has a special importance for Italian organic wine, being the first importer with a 38% stake.
The UK is the third largest export market and is worth €764 million (+2.3%). It is also the number one export market for Italian sparkling wines, with one million hectoliters in 2016, with a value of over €365 million (+33%).
China remains a country with great opportunities for the Italian wine sector as it has among the highest growth rates worldwide, both for consumption and imports. In 2016, Italian wine exports to China grew in value by 13.8% (€101 million) and 11.4% by volume (299,000 hectolitres).
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Branislav Pekic. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine
