More than 500 participants from 11 different countries attended the scientific and technical presentations on the latest vitivinicultural innovations.
During this event, placed under the patronage of the OIV, the Director General, Jean-Marie Aurand, presented the state of the vitivinicultural product market and the major trends as well as the key axes of the Organisation's Strategic Plan.
During the Congress, Jean-Marie Aurand also had several meetings with the organisers (Ministry of Agriculture represented by the OIV delegate Helder Borges, EMBRAPA, IBRAVIN, PREFEITURA, etc.) of the future OIV Congress scheduled for 23-28 October 2016 in Bento Gonçalves.
A meeting with the Governor of the State of Rio Grande Do Sul, who played a significant role in the organisation of the event, took place in Porto Alegre. These meetings demonstrated the Brazilian authorities' strong commitment on all levels to ensuring the complete success of this Congress.
The President of the producers association, Mr Svetozar Janevski, expressed his satisfaction with this opportunity to present the diversity of the country – which exports 85% of its production, mainly to neighbouring countries but also to Western Europe, Russia or China – to professionals and to the press.
The Director General of the OIV, Mr Jean-Marie Aurand, praised this initiative and the revival of this country's wine market thanks to the investment in vineyards and wineries for the last fifteen years or so, which has enabled the specific characteristics of traditional vine varieties to be expressed through modern techniques that have been developed.
With 24,000 hectares of vineyards, the majority of wineries are located in the central part of the country, along the Vardar valley and especially in the Skopje, Tikves and Gevgelija-Valandovo regions.
90% of the 84 wineries for which information was compiled produce less than 50,000 hl, 5 have a production of between 50,000 and 150,000 hl and only 4 produce over 150,000 hl.
Of a total production of nearly 1.2 million hectolitres, 60% is red, based predominantly on local vine varieties (Vranec, Kratosija, Prokupec, Kavardaka) or international varieties (Merlot, Cabernet Sauvignon, Syrah, Pinot Noir). White wine is made from varieties such as Smederevka, Temjanika, Zilavka or Rkatsiteli, enabling the production of fresh and fruity wines that perfectly complement the country's Mediterranean gastronomy.
