The Irish Wine Association (IWA) has revealed in its Annual Wine Market Review (2013), that Ireland’s wine taxes are now the highest in Europe. This has led to a 8% drop in the volume of wine being sold in Ireland.
The report outlined the impact that the 62% excise wine increase on wine over the past two Budgets has had on the market, including causing "massive cash-flow issues for SMEs" and being a "tax on consumers and tourism".
Speaking about the report, Michael Foley, IWA Chairman and Sales and Marketing Director at Findlater Wine & Spirits said: "The last number of years have been extremely challenging for Ireland’s wine industry. Penal excise increases of 62% over the last two Budgets have pushed the industry to the brink. As well as being a tax on hard-pressed consumers, these increases have put a huge strain on the thousands of small businesses across Ireland that sell wine."
The report also looked at consumption habits amongst Irish wine drinkers. Irish wine consumers marginally prefer white wine to red, with white holding a 51% volume share. This marks a shift from 2003, when red wine was the preferred option, with a 52% volume share. Interestingly, more men over 35 now drink wine (76%) than women over 35 (70%). In terms of our country preferences, Australian and Chilean wines have proven to be the most popular with Irish consumers, holding 20.6% and 20.1% of the market respectively.
Following the report, the IWA has called for a reversal of last year's increases in excise, which is giving the category a disproportionate share of the tax burden as wine sales generated. Foley concluded: “The message coming from the industry is clear: reverse excise increases and support thousands of small businesses and jobs across the industry.”
© 2014 - Checkout Magazine by Genna Patterson
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