Winegrowers should produce around 260 million hectoliters (mhl) of wine this year, estimates the OIV based on information collected from 29 countries representing 91% of world production.

The total volume appears "slightly" below the average of the last twenty years (270 mhl) "and seems to have fallen by 1% compared to 2021", indicates the organization.

2021 production, which was announced as "extremely low" around 250 mhl, has since been revised upwards to 262 mhl, according to still provisional data from the OIV.

The organization notes that the projections for 2022 are also likely to change, in particular due to the absence of data from China - which is usual at this time of year - but also "exceptionally" from Russia.

In Europe, the successive waves of heat and drought raised fears of poor harvests.

Finally, the production is "better than expected", the vines having at the same time been preserved from diseases such as mildew.

Italy and France - first and second world producers respectively - should produce more wine than the average of the last five years (2017-2021).

Spain, which completes this top three, on the other hand, shows a 12% drop in production compared to the 2017-2021 average due to "drought and limited access to water in certain regions".

The country most affected by the heat is Greece, with production which plunged by 29% compared to the 2017-2021 average.

Wine production in Europe Cyril THEOPHILOS AFP

Outside Europe, production in the United States (the world's fourth largest producer) fell by 6% compared to the 2017-2021 average, in particular due to early frost and then drought.

In the southern hemisphere, after a record 2021 harvest, production fell back to the 2017-2021 average.

New Zealand is an exception with a historically high production against a backdrop of "excellent climatic conditions and strong international demand".

Since 2000, the years 2004 and 2018 had marked records with 295 mhl of wine produced annually worldwide.

In 2017, the world harvest had dropped to 249 mhl.

“World wine production has been stable at around 260 mhl for four consecutive years,” notes the OIV.

The international organization also announced last week the return to its ranks of Ukraine, which had ceased to contribute to its financing.

The country produced 660,000 hectoliters of wine in 2021, before the Russian invasion.

© 2022 AFP