Viticulture: the harvest fell 10% and producers warn of low prices

As reported by the National Institute of Viticulture (INV)grape harvesting recorded a 8% drop up to 18.29 million quintals, about 1.5 million quintals less compared to last year’s harvest.

In the regional breakdown, production in Mendoza reached 13,147,187 quintals, registering a drop in the volume obtained of almost 2 million quintals (-12%) while in Saint John The figure was 4,097,938 quintals, above the almost 3.4 million registered last year.

Although the INV highlighted that in the first four months wine exports increased by 17% year-on-year and that domestic consumption experienced an increase of 1.5% in the first three months of the year, the truth is that The entities that bring together the producers assure that the activity is experiencing a severe crisis several months ago, prices below costs and abandonment of farms.

In fact, in the latest report on regional economies prepared by Coninagroconsidered that the sector is in a critical situationcon a drop in prices paid to the producer of 22% year-on-year, a reduction in the productive area, a decrease in domestic consumption projected of 10% for this year and a 75% increase in imports.

In this sense, the president of the Association of Argentine Wine Cooperatives (Acovi)Fabián Ruggeri, commented to Clarín Rural that the sector is going through a context “very conflictive” and that it was “very difficult to raise the harvest” this year.

In this regard, he mentioned the lack of financing for the work, beyond a special line launched by Banco Nación, to which “producers find it difficult to access.”

However, the central problem lies in the price that the producer is being paid for his merchandise, which today varies between $240 and $275 per kilo. a value that is even below those recorded last year.

“The price of grapes remains the same as last year and the same as last yearwith which the profitability of producers is quite low. This is also due in large part to a decrease in wine sales and in the marketing of the product due to the loss of purchasing power, which means that prices cannot be increased even with inflation, and that ends up being transferred to the prices paid for the raw material, right,” said Ruggeri.

For the cooperative leader, the reality of winegrowing does not escape the current situation of regional economies. Our sector today is going through a conflictive process, and we will see, to the extent that there is better purchasing power of the people, if sales recover somewhat. But it is also very necessary for the Government to begin to accompany it with some measures, especially in financing and taxes.”

For his part, the president of the Mendoza Winegrowers Association (AVM), Gustavo Córdoba, maintained that the situation of the activity is critical and that the producers “They are abandoning the farms. In recent years there are between 3,800 and 4,000 fewer than six years ago.”

According to Córdoba, the reason that explains this disappearance of producers lies in the profitability problems of the primary link, as a consequence of the fall in prices paid to farmers.

“Our production costs prepared by INTA very precisely are $360 per kilo, but we were paid $240, the same or less than last year and in installments without adjustments”he explained.

For Córdoba, “this there is no logical explanationa, but rather it is speculation on the part of the buyers, because the shipments of the first four months are greater than those of 2025. In other words, there is a movement of wines in the commercialization that does not justify the fact that so little has been paid to the producer.

“Bulks are being exported, we are competitive, there is a good movement. We are also competitive in the production and export of musts. It seems to us that in this sector, which generates 100,000 jobs, They have to continue accompanying us and not putting a spanner in the works or attacking institutions such as the specific case of the Argentine Wine Corporation (Coviar) that managed to eliminate withholdings on exports, help conquer external markets, consolidate markets and that has supported small and medium producers with wine development centers,” Córdoba concluded.