Swiss wine gets boost to fend off foreign competitors

Local wine has seen its dominance of the Swiss market eroded by rivals over the past years. The sector has now convinced politicians to give it a helping hand. At a time of belt-tightening and budget cuts, getting a spending hike through the Swiss parliament these days is not easy. However, the heady influence of fermented grapes was hard to resist for parliamentarians in the Senate during the recent spring session: they voted to boost annual funding for the promotion of Swiss-made wine from CHF2.8 million ($3.2 million) to CHF9 million. The amount might sound modest for a sector which produced more than 100 million litres of wine last year. Parliamentarians however argued that the issue for Swiss viticulture is not just production or quality (which for 2023, after a hot and dry summer, is tipped to be “excellent”); it’s also getting drinkers to choose, say, a Geneva Gamaret over an imported Italian Chianti. Want to read our weekly top stories? Subscribe here. Swiss-made wine is ...