Levan Mekhuzla: "Consent to cultivate vineyards is issued in all EU wine-producing countries"
"Consent to cultivate vineyards is issued in all wine-producing countries of the European Union. In Georgia, too, the cultivation of commercial, industrial vineyards must be oriented towards long-term quality, the seedlings must be grown in a qualified nursery, the vineyard must be planted in the right place, because not all soils produce the best quality grapes. These factors must be taken into account from the very beginning. A vineyard is a wealth that will be passed on to future generations, because the best harvest from vineyards planted now begins after 15 years," noted Levan Mekhuzla, Chairman of the National Wine Agency.
The Parliament of Georgia has already supported the amendments to the Law "On Vine and Wine" in the second reading. The law adds a norm that defines the concept of consent to the cultivation of a vineyard, which is defined as follows: a document issued by the Legal Entity of Public Law - National Wine Agency, which gives a natural person and/or legal entity the right to cultivate an industrial vineyard.
Taking into account the fact that the number of cultivated vineyards and, accordingly, the yield of grapes has increased, according to the amendment, in order to ensure the high quality of wines and alcoholic beverages with a protected designation of origin, alcoholic beverages with a protected designation of origin must be produced only from grapes harvested in the microzone specified in the production specification for this wine and/or alcoholic beverage.
The 2191amendment also stipulates that all wine companies must comply with the requirements for recording and reporting technological processes in viticulture and winemaking practices.
The goal of the changes is to promote the production of high-quality, competitive alcoholic beverages of grape origin, as well as to take into account the requirements of local and international markets necessary for their sale.
"Georgian wine should position itself in the segment where unique and premium wines are presented. Permission to cultivate a vineyard will be issued free of charge and will have to obtain permission only to those individuals who plan commercial activities. At this stage, the pace of massive cultivation of vineyards has slowed down. According to statistics from recent years, up to 500 hectares of new vineyards are being developed annually. Based on this data, we can say that obtaining permission to cultivate vineyards will apply to approximately 100 persons," - noted Levan Mekhuzla.