Global Wine Supply, Demand Fell in Last 20 Years: OIV

Global wine production in 2021 was 25% lower that in 2004, according to a new report just issued by the International Organization of Vine & Wine (OIV).

Red wines

At the beginning of the century, red wines accounted on average for 48% of the total wine production, while in the last few years, the share dropped to 43%.

Production - Negative growth rates over the 2000-2021 period are observed across all major European red wine-producing countries. In particular, it is worth noting the sharp decline in France (which nowadays produces 50% less red wine than at the beginning of the century) and Italy. These declines are only partially compensated by non-European producing countries, such as Chile, Argentina, Australia, the USA, and South Africa, which show positive growth rates in red wine production. Among the top 10 countries with the highest percentage of red wine in their national wine production, 7 are from outside Europe.

 Consumption - Demand for red wine in the last twenty years has decreased mainly in large European markets – notably Germany, France, Italy and Spain. These countries have all recorded negative growth rates for red wine since 2000. In contrast, positive growth rates over the last twenty years are recorded in China, the USA, Russia, and Brazil. The top 6 countries by percentage of red wine in their national wine consumption are outside Europe, notably in South America and East Asia.

White Wine

White wine demand and supply at the global level have expanded since 2000. Production of white wine has increased in 2021 by 13% since its lowest level in 2002, and it has overcome red wine production starting in 2013. At the beginning of the century, white wine accounted on average for 46% of the world total, while in more recent years this share rose to 49%. One of the main driving forces behind this increase is the boom of sparkling wine.

Production – The main countries that contributed to the growth at the world level are Italy (driven by the global success of Prosecco), the USA, South Africa, and Australia. On the contrary, some other large white wine-producing countries such as France and Spain (second and third white wine producers at the world level respectively), have recorded a stable trend since the beginning of the century. 

Consumption - The increase in demand for white wine is mostly driven by three important sparkling wine markets: the USA, Germany, and the UK. The rise in consumption in these countries more than compensates for the decline recorded in large wine-consuming countries such as France and Spain.

Rosé wine

In the last twenty years, rosé wine has grown significantly in terms of both demand and supply at the world level. Global production has seen an increase of 25% between 2001 and 2021. At the beginning of the century, rosé wines represented between 6 and 7% of the world's production, while in recent years it accounted for more than 8% on average.

Production – The supply of rosé wine is much more concentrated than in the case of wines of other colours, with the top 10 producing countries representing almost 90% of the world total in 2021, and the top 3 accounting for two-thirds. In the case of rosé, it is mostly the Northern Hemisphere countries that lead the growth (France especially), even though countries such as Chile and South Africa have also shown very high growth rates in the last twenty years.

Consumption - As in the case of white wines, the growth of the rosé market can be mainly attributed to an increase in demand in the UK, Germany and the US. France is by far the main market at the world level, representing more than one-third of the global demand.