Here's an article published www.cronachedigusto.it, where President dell'Assovini Settesoli Diego Planeta and through a letter about all-out crisis, opportunities for our region, wine growers and speculators on its last legs, Doc of Sicily, and politics absent. I interviewed
Diego Planeta. Only this time, after talking for a long time he sent me a long text that summarizes our long conversation. The public as well. It 'an indictment that must be read and reread. For the future use of Sicilian wine.
FC
"Dear Fabrizio, I ask
many, too many questions, answers some, the other I still think if you really want to publish and if this paper will arouse interest in your readers can write more. Urged me to start talking about crisis, dramatic declines in consumption etc.etc. Frankly, I do not see all this catastrophe, I do not think the drop in consumption may be true in Italy, not if we look at the global market, and this is what interests us. Certainly
consumption and consumer habits have moved, we understand how manufacturers-where-when, we will also change us and we will be ready to follow the evolution in progress.
On the other hand it is true that the crisis has affected the middle and upper segments (large and Gaja Chateau sell the same) it is true that increased demand for medium-priced wines.
If you look at the trend of the 2009 Italian distribution will see that the segments are growing 3 to 5 € 5 € and up, the fall in the lower segment.
The good news is that Chilean wines go up in price Australians and that the war has ended up sfiancare the multinationals that were put forth. E 'decreased their aggressive and more competitive markets today you can breathe better, the much feared invasion of U.S. wines in Europe at least, has not been as successful as expected.
I think that reality should be seen more objectively: for many years the market for upper-middle-priced wines has grown exponentially, now there is a moment of reflection, should be alert to tighten their belts and sticking.
deaths and injuries? Manco
talk about it, most companies will suffer just born, not sufficiently structured, with the obvious lack of resources and experience of course parallel to the above youth, the other will go ahead even aware that they could not wait for the "performance" the decade ended with the financial crisis. Clearly this means that the grape growers have fat years before there runs, the prices of wines and musts are certainly growing, but 30% increase to zero, unfortunately, is zero.
Here I hook the speech Cooperatives and green harvesting.
Too many cooperatives have survived for decades on byzantine, regional and community contributions, distillation, storage, enrichment etc.etc .. Now that's a finite world which unfortunately many find it hard to understand. They were a bit 'smarter would drive their partners to use heavily for green harvest that was supposed to last at least 5 years, just enough time to reorganize in a market boosted by reduction in production, and then be ready to go in adequate conditions of competitiveness. At the same time would have saved the Sicilian wine heritage that I think today really so much risk in many areas, growers are at the extreme, no longer able to stand here and look out the problems of mildew, powdery mildew, reducing yields per hectare etc.etc ..
I do not believe that in general this year have created conditions favorable to the occurrence of plant diseases, it is simply obvious that we can not afford the cost of defense careful and thorough cultivation of the vine where the grapes are then paid at 15 cents per pound (and unfortunately there is even worse).
So if we add, the natural decline in production as happens in some years, cases of diseases due to negligence, green harvesting, and grubbing up vines grown ill or abandoned for lack of income is not weird to think of a 30% reduction in production. By contrast, prices go up, but how many co-operatives and processors will be able to profit?
And how many of these increases will move sull'agricoltore?
I am not optimistic that orders of grapes made today have found large increases. Thousands of farmers are seeking alternatives to ailing cooperatives offer their grapes to a market that ... ... just not there, if we count the structures for processing can enhance the product are probably less than 10 ... as you see the cat is in the bag.
As you can see very different situations and patchy, segmented for different areas and categories, there are those who see the future with serenity, and there is concern with some people who unfortunately has no hope, how, what and to be distributed, a good puzzle, so many doubts with only one certainty, the West will suffer more than any Islander.
Meanwhile we continue to discuss green harvest, if you or if not, whether or not to resubmit it, let you turn in a couple of questions:
- there is an excess of production as it facilitates the market if not reducing ' offer at least in the short term, while attempting to save the wine heritage?
- the community, the State, the Regions provide ceiling of aid used to help farmers and to save the wine heritage, what if you can not invent green harvesting and / or distillation?
- and green harvest all of the expenditure goes to farmers.
- with the distillation will list the categories that see to satisfy their performance before the farmer:
producers of wine-making machines;
manufacturers of materials and products for wine making;
energy producers, transporters
;
distillers (in 40 years I have met thousands of experienced wine hunger of farmers and distillers never poor).
- so keep your account:
the sums spent are the same, in a case go all the farmer, the other him to be a small fraction, what is your preference?
If we were men of good will and if we had a skillful director, the "average" take advantage of these aids to work hard and get in the "long" the only true remedy of evil: the rise of "appeal" and therefore demand and consumption of wine from Sicily in the world. In my opinion there would be all the premises and many companies have demonstrated, but ... we are people of good will? We have learned royal? E then talking about the "wise directions" and long-term actions of the DOC Sicily ask me, where are we?
E 'ongoing strong domestic opposition to the Committee of Doc and that looks a bit', comes from groups and regions that have nothing to do with the Sicilian wine world.
They try to impose constraints are not written in any regulation ever imposed on other regions, the constraints that make it highly impractical because of the regional Doc. Obstacles
more than expected: too many shady characters outside the island do business in the mud dragging our brand more important "IGT Sicilia", bottled from everywhere without any control, fairness or legality.
All are full of discount Sicilian IGT Sicilia restituitoci bottled off the Island and at prices that producers would not pay us even a piece of production costs.
are things in everyone's eyes but nothing moves, the battle can be won in Rome, we could check with the Doc, rehabilitate, retrain, re-launch ... but now the time as councilor, calm, wisdom to be able to assist and guide in Rome and then reorganized in Sicily, smoothly and successfully, the system of checks and registers of producers? Over the past two years
assessors Agriculture I've seen go 3, maybe soon we will see another one that will last until a. .. who knows.
Meanwhile, officials are spinning, no excuse, "rotate" the skills, professionalism, knowledge, relationships with those who count in national and Community level should be to hell ... but maybe I'm wrong, not the skills to us in Sicily serve. We are professional and harvested when still in the womb, and then what do you want to count four buckets of grapes in the face of political and strategic balance of a region that has based its future on the packages brought into mass-votes by the tens of thousands of insecure!
Dear Fabrizio, for now I close here, I hope I never have you bored, if not then you should never even bother your readers ... until next time, that write on lights and shadows in the sector will abbiamo proprio tanto.
Un abbraccio
Diego Planeta
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