The European Association of Wine-growing Regions celebrated its 20th anniversary and approved the “Déclaration de Reims”.
The President of the Cervim, François Stévenin, representing also the Aosta Valley, took part in the plenary assembly of the Arev, the European Association of Wine-growing Regions, which was held at Reims, in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France, on 30 and 31 May.
The event also included celebrations for the 20th anniversary of the Arev, which consists of 70 members from17 European countries, under the leadership of newly-appointed Jean-Paul Bachy, president of Champagne-Ardenne.
In the two days’ work, the assembly approved an extremely important document for producers and consumers, called the “La Déclaration de Reims”, which confirms its position on a number of points:
- the Arev reaffirms its opposition to the abolition of the right to plant vines and asks the countries of the European Union not to take a decision on abrogation of the present system until after 2012;
- the Arev has always declared itself against the description of “cépage” and of “millesime” on labels of table wines because this goes against efforts to improve quality and may create confusion among consumers. The Arev asks the European Union to at least carry out strict checks on the authenticity of the origin stated;
- the Arev underlines that age-old oenoligical practice, appropriately controlled, is a “trump” for the market and authorization of new practice should be granted only when the general interest of producers and consumers is demonstrated;
- the Arev reaffirms that the uprooting programme must not lead to the disappearance of historic vineyards that have considerable relevance from the socio-economic, landscape and biodiversity viewpoints: the specificity of whole areas should be safeguarded, in particular, as regards vineyards on steep slopes.
CERVIM Press Office