EU commission withdraws proposals for new regulations on organic wine

Last week, Dacian Cellos, EU commissioner for agriculture & rural development, withdrew proposals for new regulations on organic wine. Current rules only cover the grapes used in wine and the Commission planned to extend these to cover the process of wine making itself.
After several months of discussion, attempts to find a credible compromise failed as negotiators could not agree on a limit for sulphites. The International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movements (IFOAM) had proposed a limit that would be reduced at a later date. But this was not acceptable to the Commission which feared that such a two-step compromise would dilute organic standards. Cellos said: “I am not willing to compromise on organic standards because it sends the wrong signal to consumers on the importance we attach to quality policy.”

The Commission said it hoped progress at an industry and research level would mean the proposals could be reconsidered later.