(1)

While the Union remains the global leader in wine production, consumption and exported value, societal and demographic changes are having an impact on the amount, quality, and types of wine consumed. Wine consumption in the Union is at its lowest level in three decades while traditional export markets for Union wines are adversely affected by a combination of decreasing consumption trends and geopolitical factors, leading to more uncertain export patterns. In addition, given the wine sector’s vulnerability to climate change, wine production is becoming unpredictable. The resulting oversupply leads to a decrease in prices, meaning that winegrowers have less income to invest in their businesses and lower financial reserves for them to fall back on if one of the more frequent and often localised severe weather events hits their region.

(2)

The High-Level Group on Wine Policy (‘HLG’) was established to discuss those challenges and to identify possible opportunities for the Union wine sector. It reflected on how to better support a sector that is currently facing structural challenges, for example by managing the production potential, enhancing competitiveness and exploring new market opportunities. After four meetings, the HLG endorsed ‘policy recommendations for the future of the EU wine sector’.

(3)

In order to provide the best possible support to wine producers facing such challenges, it is appropriate to reflect the most urgent recommendations of the HLG in the legal framework applicable to wines and aromatised wine products.

(4)

In the wine sector, the relationship between production supply, consumer demand and exports on the world market is currently unstable, resulting in serious market disturbances. In addition, there is a trend towards a continued decrease in wine consumption in the Union due to changes in consumer habits and lifestyle. The existing scheme of authorisations for vine plantings is considered essential to maintain the balance between the supply capacity of the sector, a fair standard of living for producers and reasonable prices for consumers, whilst ensuring diversity of wines and responding to the specificities of the Union wine sector. The Union wine sector has specific characteristics, including the long lifecycle of its vineyards, resulting from the fact that production is only possible several years after planting but then continues for several decades and that it has the potential for considerable fluctuations from one harvest to the next. The Union wine sector is also characterised by a very high percentage of small, family-run farms, which results in a diverse range of wines. Such producers need long-term predictability to justify the significant investment required to plant a vineyard and to guarantee the economic viability of their projects over time, in the process improving the competitiveness of the Union wine sector on the global market. In order to consolidate the Union wine sector’s achievements to date and to achieve sustainable balance between quantity and quality in the sector, through the continued orderly growth of vine planting, the scheme of authorisations for vine plantings should be extended, subject to reviews every 10 years to evaluate the scheme. If appropriate, proposals should be presented on the basis of the results of those reviews with a view to improving the competitiveness of the wine sector.

(5)

In view of the current decline in demand for wine, winegrowers who hold valid unused authorisations for new plantings and authorisations resulting from the conversion of planting rights granted to them before 1 January 2025 should not be penalised for not using these authorisations. That should have the effect of removing the incentive for planting authorisation holders to plant vineyards where there might be no demand for the wine produced. Administrative penalties should continue to apply in respect of the non-use of planting authorisations granted after 1 January 2025 in order to discourage speculative applications for such authorisations from winegrowers who have no intention of planting a vineyard.

(6)

With natural disasters, severe meteorological events and plant disease outbreaks becoming more frequent, Member States should be given the possibility to extend by up to twelve months the validity of planting authorisations granted for the region affected and due to expire by the end of the marketing year concerned. Holders of such planting authorisations should have the possibility to renounce their authorisations without incurring administrative penalties where they inform the competent authorities of the Member State that they do not wish to make use of their authorisations within the extended deadline. While administrative penalties aim to prevent speculative applications for planting authorisations, exceptional circumstances can lead to unforeseen practical difficulties for winegrowers, preventing them from planting new vineyards. In order to avoid additional hardship in such cases, the competent authorities of the Member States should be allowed to waive the administrative penalties for the non-use of a planting authorisation upon a justified request from the winegrower concerned.

(7)

Concerning the management of the production potential, a longer validity period of replanting authorisations should be established to give producers more time to explore the possibility of planting varieties which are better adapted to the market demand or to the changing climatic conditions or of using new vineyard management techniques. Furthermore, to alleviate pressure on winegrowers, they should not face administrative penalties if they decide not to use a replanting authorisation.

(8)

The last day of the validity of authorisations granted under Articles 64, 66 and 68 of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 of the European Parliament and of the Council (4) before the entry into force of this amending Regulation is dependent on their date of issuance. As an administrative simplification, all those authorisations should remain valid until the last day of the relevant marketing year.

(9)

Abandoned vineyards can harbour pests and diseases and can therefore pose a risk to the surrounding vineyard area. Member States should therefore be permitted to require the grubbing up of such abandoned vineyards. The Commission should be empowered to adopt delegated acts laying down conditions for such grubbing up.

(10)

Where, in justified crisis situations, national or Union measures aimed at reducing the supply (concerning distillation, green harvesting or grubbing up of vineyards) are or have been implemented, Member States should be given the possibility to limit the issuing of new planting authorisations at regional level in respect of specific areas with excess supply, in order to avoid increasing the production potential.

(11)

In order to better take into account recent trends in the wine sector, Member States should have the flexibility to set regional limits on the issuing of new planting authorisations for specific areas that are as low as 0 %, with a view to managing the production potential. Where a Member State decides to set such regional limits for specific areas to avoid an excessive increase in production potential, it is appropriate to allow that Member State to require that the authorisations granted for the area concerned by the regional limit be used in that area.

(12)

Products with a protected designation of origin or a protected geographical indication have unique characteristics, linked to their geographical origin as well as traditional know-how. In order to protect the reputation of such products and to avoid the risk of significant devaluation or improper use by third parties, it is appropriate to allow Member States to set limitations in granting new planting authorisations, to adopt measures to prevent the circumvention of rules concerning the safeguard mechanism for new plantings, and to lay down the eligibility and priority criteria for the granting of authorisations for new plantings in the areas concerned.

(13)

In order to avoid aggravating the risk of oversupply in regions where a Member State has opted to limit the granting of new planting authorisations, the Member State should be able to set eligibility conditions for the granting of new planting authorisations to avoid excessive yields in the new vineyards planted in the regions concerned.

(14)

It should be clarified that, when granting vine planting authorisations, Member States should be able to use objective, non-discriminatory eligibility and priority criteria that result in preference being given to vineyards that contribute to improving products with geographical indications or their quality.

(15)

When Member States decide to make use of the possibility of limiting the issuing of authorisations at regional level, taking into consideration recommendations presented by recognised professional organisations operating in the wine sector, it is appropriate to further clarify which kinds of organisations can issue such recommendations.

(16)

Replanting authorisations are granted to producers who have grubbed up an area planted with vines and submitted an application. It should be clarified that a winegrower who receives support for the grubbing up of vines in accordance with Article 216(1) of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 or Article 58(1), first subparagraph, point (o), of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 of the European Parliament and of the Council (5) is not entitled to a replanting authorisation for the area in question.

(17)

Replanting authorisations must be used on the same holding on which the grubbing up was undertaken, but it is possible to use them on a different plot of land within the same holding. Given that holdings can consist of plots of land in different production regions, it is important to give Member States the possibility to ensure that, in areas eligible for the production of wine with protected designation of origin or protected geographical indications, no replanting authorisations resulting from the grubbing up of vineyards outside that area are used. It is appropriate that Member States take such a decision on the basis of a recommendation from a professional organisation that is representative in the area concerned.

(18)

While the replanting of a grubbed up vineyard does not increase the vineyard area, Member States should be given the possibility to set rules for replanting in order to better manage the territorial distribution of vineyards, for instance to avoid the relocation of vineyards to regions with a market imbalance or away from slopes and terraces, where they play an important role in the preservation of the landscape and avoid soil erosion. Member States should also be given the possibility to set conditions in respect of vines producing specific types of wine and production methods identified by the Member State as significantly increasing the average yield of the production region, or conditions to ensure preservation of traditional production methods.

(19)

In order to ensure a proportionate approach to the application of the scheme of authorisations for vine plantings while taking into consideration the serious risks that oversupply represents to the market, it is appropriate to establish a maximum threshold of hectares of planted vineyards below which Member States are exempted from the obligation to apply the scheme of planting authorisations.

(20)

Recent years have seen an ever-increasing demand on the part of consumers for grapevine products with a reduced alcohol content produced by de-alcoholisation by using certain techniques allowed in the Union. The production of partially de-alcoholised wines by the blending, or ‘coupage’, of de-alcoholised wine or partially de-alcoholised wine with wine or partially de-alcoholised wine should be allowed, since it can enhance the sensory characteristics of the final product and offers a way of producing partially de-alcoholised wines more sustainably.

(21)

High consumer demand for sparkling wine products with a reduced alcohol content or without alcohol represents an opportunity for the sector. However, the rules for the production of de-alcoholised wines impose certain technological limitations on the production of sparkling wine products. According to the rules currently in force, wine products must have attained the characteristics and the minimum actual alcoholic strength of the corresponding product category before undergoing the de-alcoholisation process. This implies that de-alcoholised and partially de-alcoholised sparkling wine products can only be produced from sparkling wines of the same category. However, the de-alcoholisation process entirely removes the carbon dioxide from the initial sparkling wine. Consequently, to produce a sparkling wine product with reduced or no alcohol content, it is necessary to reintroduce the carbon dioxide in the partially or totally de-alcoholised wine using a new, separate process. Therefore, producers should be allowed to produce de-alcoholised or partially de-alcoholised sparkling wine, semi-sparkling wine, aerated sparkling wine and aerated semi-sparkling wine directly from a de-alcoholised or partially de-alcoholised still wine by means of second fermentation or the addition of carbon dioxide, as appropriate. This would enable the Union wine sector to benefit from new developments in consumer demand while maintaining its high quality production standards.

(22)

The rules on the labelling of wine products should be amended in order to better inform the consumer of the characteristics of grapevine products with a reduced alcohol content, while retaining the obligation to provide information on the use of de-alcoholisation. Consumers are familiar with terms such as ‘0,0 %’ and ‘alcohol-free’. However, such terms are regulated differently in different Member States. The terms referring to a reduced alcohol content should comply with the Union rules for labelling the reduced content of certain substances. It is therefore necessary to harmonise the use of these terms across the Union, thereby enabling the wine sector to benefit from new consumer demands while ensuring the functioning of the internal market.

(23)

Complying with the Union requirement to include the list of ingredients and the nutrition declaration on the labels of exported wine can be burdensome for exporters, especially where the labelling requirements of the importing third countries differ from those of the Union. To facilitate exports in such cases, it is appropriate to exempt the wine to be exported from those Union labelling requirements.

(24)

Providing the list of ingredients and the nutrition declaration of wine products by electronic means is an effective way for operators to present important information to consumers, while facilitating the functioning of the internal market and wine exports. This is particularly the case for small producers. However, the absence of harmonised rules on the identification, on the package or on a label attached to it, of the electronic means providing the list of ingredients and/or the nutrition declaration, has resulted in the emergence of diverging practices by operators and of different rules by national authorities, adversely affecting the proper marketing of wines. In order to minimise costs and the administrative burden for operators, and to ensure a common approach across the Union market, while taking into account the need to make such information accessible to consumers, the Commission should be empowered to adopt delegated acts, in cooperation with Member States, to supplement Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 by laying down rules on the identification on the package or on the label attached thereto of the electronic means providing consumers with the list of ingredients and the nutrition declaration in a harmonised way, including through a language-free system.

(25)

To reduce the burden on operators, and the uncertainty that they face, it is appropriate to clarify that compulsory particulars should be required to be displayed on any given packaging only once.

(26)

In order to ensure that the form and layout of the electronic means is able to meet new needs arising from the fast and constant progress of digitalisation and to enable those electronic means to include other relevant information for consumers required by Union or national law and allowed to be presented electronically, thereby reducing the administrative burden on operators, the Commission should be empowered to adopt delegated acts to supplement Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 by laying down rules on the presentation of information on electronic labels.

(27)

Experience has shown that when a term referring to a holding in the wine sector has been reserved at Union level, and is subject to certain conditions, its use in trademarks or commercial names can be misleading for consumers. Therefore, the Commission should be empowered to adopt delegated acts to supplement Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 by laying down rules on the relationship between terms referring to a holding and trademarks and commercial names.

(28)

Member States have the possibility to adopt marketing rules to regulate the supply in the wine sector to improve and stabilise the operation of the common wine market. In the current context of the structural decrease in consumption and recurrent situations of oversupply in certain regions and market segments, it is appropriate to clarify that such rules can include the setting of maximum grape yields and the management of wine stocks. Moreover, producer groups managing protected designations of origin and protected geographical indications, as well as recognised producer organisations, can play an important role in adapting supply to market trends and in strengthening the position of winegrowers in the supply chain. Therefore, Member States should also be able to adopt marketing rules in the wine sector, taking into account proposals adopted by recognised interbranch organisations, by producer groups managing protected designations of origin and protected geographical indications or by recognised producer organisations when they are representative in the concerned production area or areas.

(29)

The special commercial value of wines covered by a protected designation of origin or protected geographical indication derives from their reputation based on the quality value that consumers attribute to their characteristics. To prevent their quality credentials from being undermined by detrimental price action, interbranch organisations and producer groups managing protected designations of origin and protected geographical indications should, where they are representative in the related geographical area for the different professional categories operating in the wine sector, be able to issue price guidance concerning the sales of the relevant grapes, musts or wines. However, such guidance should be non-mandatory, in order to prevent excessive restriction of price competition within the same geographical indication. Moreover, as an additional safeguard, the relevant national competition authority should be allowed to decide in individual cases to modify or discontinue price guidance indicators if necessary to prevent competition being excluded or the jeopardising of the objectives set out in Article 39 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU).

(30)

Member States can currently be authorised to make national payments to wine producers for the voluntary or mandatory distillation of wine. Given the cost-effectiveness of removing surplus production from the market before wine is produced, it is appropriate, in justified cases of crisis, to allow Member States to be authorised to make national payments for voluntary green harvesting and voluntary grubbing up of productive vineyards, subject to certain conditions. In order to avoid distortion of competition, it is necessary to lay down the main criteria to be used for determining the maximum national payment per unit of product or per hectare. To that same end, this Regulation should also set limits for the overall amount of national payments authorised in a Member State in any given year for distillation and green harvesting. For grubbing up, given the structural nature of the measure and its higher costs, it is not appropriate to set an overall maximum amount of national payments. However, Member States should justify in their notification to the Commission the limit for national payments on a case-by-case basis based on their specific market circumstances and those of the wine regions in which the measure would be implemented.

(31)

In order to avoid distortion of competition and to assure the efficacy and proportionality of the crisis measures for which national payments are to be authorised, the Commission should be empowered to adopt delegated acts to supplement Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 by laying down rules on the general conditions of eligibility and the priority criteria to be set by Member States in respect to the allocation of such national payments, for determining the market situations under which such measures are justified, on the calculation of national payments and on their coherence with other support measures for the wine sector within the common agricultural policy (CAP).

(32)

Aromatised wine products are a natural outlet for grapevine products. However, Regulation (EU) No 251/2014 of the European Parliament and of the Council (6) does not allow the use of the sales denominations reserved for aromatised wine products for beverages which do not reach the minimum actual alcohol content laid down in that Regulation for each product category. In view of the increasing consumer demand for innovative alcoholic beverages with a lower actual alcoholic strength by volume, it should be possible to place on the market beverages obtained from de-alcoholised or partially de-alcoholised wines produced in accordance with Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 that have sales denominations that are reserved for aromatised wine products.

(33)

In order to ensure that consumers are correctly informed of the nature of aromatised wine products with a reduced alcohol content, it is appropriate to lay down rules in line with those laid down in Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 for the labelling of de-alcoholised or partially de-alcoholised wines, so that aromatised wine products obtained from de-alcoholised or partially de-alcoholised wines are described in their presentation and labelling by the same terms as grapevine products with the corresponding alcohol content. It is also appropriate to align the language requirements applicable to aromatised wine products with those already applicable to grapevine products.

(34)

The issues highlighted for grapevine products in relation to the identification of the electronic means containing the nutrition declaration and the list of ingredients are valid also for aromatised wine products. Therefore, the Commission should be empowered to adopt delegated acts to supplement Regulation (EU) No 251/2014 by laying down rules on the identification on the package or on the label attached thereto of the electronic means for aromatised wine products.

(35)

In order to meet new consumer demands and the need for product innovation, rules on the production and labelling of the aromatised wine product categories ‘Glühwein’, ‘Viiniglögi/Vinglögg/Karštas vynas’ and ‘Pelin’ should be amended to allow for them to be produced using rosé wine and for this to be indicated in the labelling. At the same time, the use of the term ‘rosé’ in the presentation and labelling of Glühwein and Pelin produced by combining red and white wine or any of those with rosé wine should be prohibited. For the same reasons, it is also appropriate to allow alcoholic beverages produced with the same requirements as those laid down for Glühwein, but having as their main ingredient fruit wine rather than grapevine products, to use the sales denomination ‘Glühwein’ in their presentation and labelling.

(36)

For the purposes of implementing the restructuring and conversion of vineyards type of intervention, it is appropriate to clarify in Article 58(1), first subparagraph, point (a)(i), of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 that it is also possible for varietal conversion to pursue the objective of increasing the climate resilience of vines.

(37)

Wine tourism is an increasingly important commercial activity for many wine operators. In order to support the development of direct sales to tourists in producing regions, it is appropriate to clarify that it is also possible for wine tourism to be the object of investments in marketing structures and tools.

(38)

In the current difficult and quickly evolving market situation and with a view to improving the sustainability of vineyards and the knowledge exchange, the availability of advisory services to winegrowers and other operators in the wine sector becomes paramount. Therefore, the types of advisory services listed in Article 58(1), first subparagraph, point (f), of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 should be amended to include important additional advisory services, such as marketing through direct sales, environmental sustainability and diversification from wine production.

(39)

Moreover, with a view to increasing the effectiveness of support for the development of wine tourism in different wine regions, it is appropriate to explicitly allow as beneficiaries of the type of intervention referred to in Article 58(1), first subparagraph, point (i), of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 organisations referred to in Articles 152, 156 and 157 of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013 that are active in the wine sector, producer groups managing protected designations of origin and protected geographical indications in accordance with Regulation (EU) 2024/1143 of the European Parliament and of the Council (7), as well as other professional organisations operating in the wine sector established as beneficiaries by Member States in their CAP Strategic Plans.

(40)

In order to strike a balance between the need for Member States to ensure efficient restructuring of vineyards and the need to avoid an increase in production that could lead to oversupply, Member States should be allowed to set up conditions for implementing the restructuring and conversion of vineyards, as referred to in Article 58(1), first subparagraph, point (a), of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115. These conditions should aim to avoid increasing yield, and therefore production, for the vineyards subject to this type of intervention.

(41)

To adapt to market trends and harness efficient market opportunities, including by opening up new export markets and diversifying market outlets, the duration of the support for promotion and communication operations carried out in third countries should be three years. Member States should be able to decide to extend the duration of an operation twice for a maximum of three years for each extension, resulting in a maximum period of nine consecutive years. Additionally, Member States should facilitate the access of small producers, as defined in Commission Delegated Regulation (EU) 2018/273 (8), to support that is available under the promotion and communication type of intervention, by providing them with a simplified application procedure or by applying objective and non-discriminatory priority criteria concerning new beneficiaries, new markets and new products. Considering the diversity of wine market structures in third countries and the lack of a common definition of ‘third country market’ for the purposes of the promotion and communication types of intervention, it is appropriate to set out some key elements to assist Member States in arriving at their own definition of a third country market for the implementation of those interventions.

(42)

Highly contagious pests, such as flavescence dorée, are a major threat to wine production, since they weaken grapevines by reducing productivity or entirely destroying vine stocks. As a cure is often difficult or impossible once vine stocks are infected, the only way of responding efficiently to the threat is through prevention and management interventions. In view of the high phytosanitary risks posed by such pests, and the importance of systematic and collective action to prevent their spread, it is appropriate to provide specific support for such actions. Consequently, a new type of intervention in the wine sector should be added to the list of types of intervention set out in Article 58(1), first subparagraph, of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115.

(43)

Taking into account the severe structural imbalance that exists in certain wine producing regions, it is appropriate to allow Member States to finance permanent grubbing up of productive vineyards through their CAP Strategic Plans. Therefore, a new type of intervention in the wine sector should be added to Article 58(1), first subparagraph, of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115. Like the permanent grubbing up measure funded by national payments, referred to in Article 216 of Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013, that new type of intervention, namely ‘permanent grubbing up’ should be subject to specific conditions, such as a prohibition on holding or obtaining a valid planting authorisation during a certain period or restrictions imposed by Member States in relation to areas excluded from the scope of the intervention where vineyards play an important environmental, landscape preservation or socio-economic role.

(44)

To ensure adequate support for winegrowers in relation to the adaptation to climate change, it is important to provide Member States with the possibility to increase the maximum Union financial assistance to up to 80 % of the actual costs of restructuring and conversion of vineyards if the intervention pursues that objective.

(45)

To strengthen cooperation in the wine sector, investments referred to in Article 58(1), first subparagraph, point (b), of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 carried out by producer organisations recognised under Regulation (EU) No 1308/2013, such as cooperatives, should benefit from the maximum rate of Union financial assistance set out in Article 59(2) of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115, as is already the case for micro, small and medium-sized enterprises within the meaning of Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC (9).

(46)

To further support producers in respect of climate change mitigation and adaptation, as well as to facilitate improvements in the sustainability of production systems and the reduction of the environmental impact, it is appropriate to provide for the possibility for Member States to increase the maximum Union financial assistance for investments pursuing that objective to up to 80 % of the eligible investment costs.

(47)

Moreover, it is necessary to clarify that the Union financial assistance for innovation referred to in Article 58(1), first subparagraph, point (e), of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 should not be granted to enterprises in difficulty within the meaning of Commission Communication ‘Guidelines on State aid for rescuing and restructuring non-financial undertakings in difficulty’ as is the case for Union financial assistance for investments referred to in Article 58(1), first subparagraph, point (b), of that Regulation.

(48)

In addition, to ensure that the enlarged scope of the advisory services type of intervention referred to in Article 58(1), first subparagraph, point (f), of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 is accompanied by an appropriate set of financial rules, it is necessary to lay down the maximum percentage of Union financial assistance that can be granted to that type of intervention.

(49)

To further support the information, promotion and communication types of intervention referred to in Article 58(1), first subparagraph, points (h) and (k), of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115, it should be possible for Member States to increase the maximum Union financial assistance for such interventions to up to 60 % of the eligible expenditure. Furthermore, it should also be possible for Member States to provide a national contribution to the eligible costs of these types of intervention. Considering that micro, small and medium-sized enterprises within the meaning of Commission Recommendation 2003/361/EC face financial constraints more often when carrying out communication and promotion campaigns than is the case for large enterprises, Member States should be given the possibility to provide a higher financial support to micro, small and medium-sized enterprises.

(50)

To provide sufficient support for the fight against highly infectious pests, it is appropriate to allow the type of intervention referred to in Article 58(1), first subparagraph, point (n), of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115 to benefit from Union financial assistance covering up to 100 % of the eligible expenditure.

(51)

Moreover, it is necessary to lay down the maximum Union financial assistance for permanent grubbing up under the type of intervention referred to in Article 58(1), first subparagraph, point (o), of Regulation (EU) 2021/2115. Such assistance should amount to a percentage of the sum of the direct costs of grubbing up and the estimated loss of revenue for one year in respect of the area grubbed up. In addition, it should also be possible for Member States to provide an additional national contribution.

(52)

Spirit drinks with a geographical indication are often reliant on complex supply chains involving several operators performing different production stages. Arrangements that rely on flexible sourcing are very common. The specific labelling obligation for spirit drinks laid down in Article 37(5) of Regulation (EU) 2024/1143, requiring the indication of the producer’s name in the same field of vision as the geographical indication, has been shown not to fit the structure of most of the spirit drinks’ supply chain well. To avoid disruption of established practices and imposing disproportionate burdens on operators in this sector, especially on small and medium-sized producers, it is appropriate to remove that obligation.

(53)

In order to supplement the relevant rules and to take into account the specific characteristics of the wine sector, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission in respect of the conditions for the application of the exemption from the application of the scheme of authorisations for vine plantings, the conditions for the grubbing up of abandoned vineyards, the rules relating to the criteria for granting authorisations for new plantings, including the addition of criteria, the co-existence of vines that the producer has undertaken to grub up with newly planted vines, the grounds for Member State decisions regarding replantings, the general conditions of eligibility and the priority criteria to be set by Member States in respect to the allocation of the national payments, elements that determine the existence of a crisis situation, the calculation method for the national payments and the coherence with other Union support measures for the wine sector; as well as the identification on the package or on the label attached thereto of the electronic means and the form and layout of the information provided by electronic means. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making (10). In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the European Parliament and the Council receive all documents at the same time as Member States’ experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts.

(54)

Since the objectives of this Regulation, namely the improvement of certain market rules and sectoral support measures in the wine sector and for aromatised wine products, as well as certain labelling rules for spirit drinks, cannot be sufficiently achieved by the Member States, but can rather, by reason of the scale and effects of this Regulation, be better achieved at Union level, the Union may adopt measures, in accordance with the principle of subsidiarity as set out in Article 5 of the Treaty on European Union. In accordance with the principle of proportionality as set out in that Article, this Regulation does not go beyond what is necessary in order to achieve those objectives.

(55)

Regulations (EU) No 1308/2013, (EU) No 251/2014, (EU) 2021/2115 and (EU) 2024/1143 should therefore be amended accordingly.

(56)

In order to allow time for producers to adapt to the new requirements concerning the designation of grapevine products with a reduced alcohol content, those new requirements should start to apply 18 months from the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation. It is also appropriate to provide transitional rules to allow grapevine products labelled prior to the application of the new requirements to continue to be placed on the market until stocks are exhausted.

(57)

The application date of the provisions on a maximum threshold of hectares of planted vineyards which exempt Member States from the obligation to apply the scheme of authorisations for vine plantings should be postponed by 48 months in order to allow sufficient time to implement it for those Member States whose vineyard area is above the maximum threshold of hectares at the date of entry into force of this amending Regulation,

(1)

in Article 3(5), the following point is added:

;

(2)

Article 61 is replaced by the following:

(3)

Article 62 is amended as follows:

(4)

Article 63 is amended as follows:

(5)

Article 64 is amended as follows:

(6)

in Article 65, the first paragraph is replaced by the following:

‘When applying Article 63(2), a Member State may take into account recommendations presented by recognised professional organisations operating in the wine sector referred to in Articles 152, 156 and 157 of this Regulation, by producer groups referred to in Articles 32 and 33 of Regulation (EU) 2024/1143 or by other types of professional organisations recognised on the basis of that Member State’s legislation, provided that those recommendations are preceded by an agreement entered into by the relevant representative parties in the reference geographical area.’

(7)

Article 66 is amended as follows:

(8)

Article 67 is replaced by the following:

(9)

Article 69 is replaced by the following:

(10)

Article 119 is amended as follows:

(11)

in Article 122, paragraph 1 is amended as follows:

(12)

in Article 167(1), the first subparagraph is replaced by the following:

(13)

Article 172b is replaced by the following:

(14)

Article 216 is amended as follows:

(15)

in Part II of Annex VII, the following subparagraphs are added to the introductory wording:

‘Grapevine products of the categories set out in points (4) and (8) may be obtained by second fermentation of de-alcoholised or partially de-alcoholised wines referred to in point (1).

Grapevine products of the categories set out in points (7) and (9) may be obtained by the addition of carbon dioxide to de-alcoholised or partially de-alcoholised wines referred to in point (1).’.

(1)

in Article 3, the following paragraph is added:

(2)

in Article 5, the following paragraph is inserted:

(3)

in Article 6a, the following paragraph is added:

(4)

the following article is inserted:

(5)

in Article 8, paragraph 1 is replaced by the following:

(6)

in Part B of Annex II, point (8) is replaced by the following:

;

(7)

in Part B of Annex II, point (9) is replaced by the following:

;

(8)

in Part B of Annex II, point (12) is replaced by the following:

(1)

in Article 45, point (d) is replaced by the following:

;

(2)

Article 58(1) is amended as follows:

(3)

Article 59 is amended as follows:

(1)

the second subparagraph is deleted;

(2)

the fourth subparagraph is replaced by the following:

‘Agricultural products that are marketed under a geographical indication, which were labelled before 14 May 2026, may continue to be placed on the market without complying with the obligation to indicate the name of the producer or operator in the same field of vision as the geographical indication, until existing stocks are exhausted.’.