The European Union has rejected a proposal to create an organic wine category, despite regulation being 'urgently needed'.

‘Organic’ wine producers in Europe can only state their wine is made from organically-grown grapes and politicians have been debating the introduction of an organic wine category.

Copa-Cogeca, which represents 11 million European farmers and 40,000 cooperatives, has criticised the EU for the proposal’s collapse. Its secretary-general Pekka Pesonen, said: ‘I am really disappointed by the move.’

‘EU legislation on organic wine is urgently needed in order to harmonise rules on organic wine at EU level and to develop the market for this product, especially since there is increasing demand for it,’ he added.

The proposal looked for a lower limit on sulphites, fewer permitted additives, and banning five winemaking techniques such as the spinning cone, which removes alcohol from wine.

EU Commissioner for Agriculture & Rural Development Dacian Ciolos withdrew the draft proposal but added, ‘Our hope would be that…the Commission can come back to these proposals in future.’

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Written by Rebecca Gibb

Rebecca Gibb MW
Rebecca Gibb MW
Decanter Magazine & DWWA Judge

Rebecca Gibb MW is a wine journalist and editor who has also founded Bamboozled games, ‘the world’s first wine and spirit puzzle makers’. Having spent six years living in New Zealand, she has recently returned to her native north-east England. While in New Zealand, she became a Master of Wine, graduating top of her class and winning the Madame Bollinger medal for excellence in tasting. A former winner of both the UK’s young wine writer of the year and the Louis Roederer Emerging Wine Writer, her first book The Wines of New Zealand was published in 2018. She also runs wine events and has her own consultancy business The Drinks Project. She was a judge at the 2019 Decanter World Wine Awards (DWWA).