According to Liliana Dascaliuc, Head of the Department of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry, one of the main additions to the Law on Grapes and Wine is the new wording of the article “Viticultural Area”. The national viticulture area now refers to the viticulture zone C1, located in the immediate vicinity of the Republic of Moldova, and includes regions, centers and regions. The C1 zone also includes parts of Romania, France, Italy, Spain, Hungary, Slovakia and Croatia. This division concerns the EU countries.
“It was necessary for Moldova to join some viticulture zone in order to correctly apply the allowed winemaking techniques. For example, allowed limits in the enrichment process to increase the natural volume fraction of ethyl alcohol in unfavorable years for viticulture, acidification or acid reduction, etc. These values vary from winemaking zone to winemaking zone. Entering the zoning system is also important when the origin of the wine is determined. For this purpose, isotope analysis is applied and the result obtained must be consistent for wines from a particular viticultural zone,” explained Ms. Daskaliuk.
There have been cases when in controversial situations in one of the EU countries Moldovan wines were compared with Crimean wines, which led to incorrect conclusions. They were not in our favor, as the conditions for viticulture are very different.
The law has a new chapter dedicated to traditional designations (TO) in the grape and wine industry. A TO is only used in connection with products with a protected geographical indication (IGP) or a protected appellation of origin (DOP) and refers to the method of production, quality, color, features of the place of origin or the history of the product as its specialty. A traditional designation is indicated in the specifications for a geographical indication or appellation of origin and is protected against unlawful use. But the protection is granted to the TOs only in the Romanian language.
Now there is more clarity about Isabella group vineyards, which are still quite numerous in Moldova, and other varieties of simple hybrids (direct producers) such as Seibel, Cuderc, Baco, etc. In 2024, this law introduced a ban on the establishment of commercial plantations (i.e. on an area of 0.1 ha or more) with hybrid varieties. And in the latest version it is clarified that the prohibition refers to planting vineyards with these varieties for the production of wine products. And it is allowed for use for other purposes – for example, for making juices, compotes, raisins, etc. By the way, grapes of the Isabell group perfectly shows itself in these food products. Therefore, there is no need to uproot these vineyards if there is a use for the harvest.
The requirement to uproot vineyards of those varieties that have been excluded from the Plant Variety Catalog and/or from the EU General Catalog of Grape Varieties within 15 years has been borrowed from EU legislation. However, this does not apply to vineyards whose harvest is used for own consumption.
The law also separates the requirements related to the placement of wine products on the market. Thanks to this, some existing discrepancies related to references to the Law on Production and Turnover of Ethyl Alcohol and Alcoholic Beverages (No. 1100) have been removed. That is, one of the conditions for the wholesale sale of wine products is the possession of specialized warehouses with an area of not less than 200 square meters. m. And the sale of wine-based products is regulated by Law No. 1100, i.e. we are talking about warehouses with an area of at least 500 square meters. m.
Many producers complained that they had to fill in too many logbooks. After the change in the law, the two articles stating that two logbooks were required were no longer in force. However, they did not disappear from the production life of wineries. “They are no longer in the Law on Grapes and Wine because they are mentioned in the Regulation on the Organization of the Grape and Wine Market. We have eliminated the duplication of provisions. In addition, the law should be more general, framework in nature. All the logbooks have been retained. And this traceability system is not our invention. It corresponds to the one adopted in the EU and is designed to ensure that there is no abuse and production is transparent,” said Liliana Daskaliuk.
The only thing that the industry does not have yet is a republican computerized accounting to ensure traceability. For this purpose it is necessary to supplement the grape and wine register with new blocks. But there are no finances for the development of such software yet. The Ministry of Agriculture and Food Industry intends to ask the European Commission for financial support to solve this issue. At least 200 thousand euros are needed. Filling in online declarations, records of grape and wine products, logbooks would remove a lot of bureaucratic (according to producers) aspects. Thanks to this it would be possible to do state inspections remotely.
Producer associations in the winegrowing and winemaking sector have more opportunities. They can develop initiatives in the field of promotion and realization of grape and wine products, conduct research, promote the introduction of innovative methods of cultivation and ecological production technologies. They can promote their products themselves in certain markets as a region. This is what many wine regions from other countries do. And after that, you can apply for subsidies. Because the promotion will be subsidized in the future.
