The European ministers of agriculture are protesting against the plans of the EU Commission for a reform of the wine market.

At the meeting of the EU council of ministers of agriculture held yesterday, not only the German minister, Horst Seehofer, opposed the plans of the commission. In addition, France, Austria, the Czech Republic and several other member states also indicated they rejected the proposed reform plan. In particular, they criticised the plans of the EU to uproot a total of 200.000 hectares of vines by the year 2013, and then to again permit new plantings in the EU as of 2014. This would threaten wine-growing in classical regions, and wine producers working steep slopes would be put at a disadvantage, claimed most of the ministers. There appears to be an increasing likelihood that the EU Commission will have to modify its plans, at least in this regard.