Valoritalia: 2024a year of consolidation for Italian wine. Reds are suffering, but not all of them

2.019 billion bottles of PDO and PGI wine were placed on the market, 0.46% less than the previous year, but 1.4% higher than the average for the period 2019-2023, with bottling increasing by almost 110 million bottles compared to 2019, a result achieved despite a global context affected by stagnant wine consumption. Furthermore, the scenario sees appellations with a total or partial prevalence of red wines suffer a 6.8% contraction, even though 38 of the 128 DO appellations in the category closed the year with positive values, including some important appellations such as Barolo, Brunello di Montalcino, Bolgheri, and Maremma Toscana. However, there was also a 5% loss in white wine appellations, with the exception of Pinot Grigio delle Venezie, which gained 3% in volume, and a significant jump of 5% for sparkling wines made from white grapes, led by Prosecco DOC (+7%), Asolo Prosecco DOCG (+50%), and Alta Langa (+9.1%). These trends highlight a shift in consumer preferences and the emergence of a different style of consumption. These are some of the findings that emerged from the 2025 Annual Report by Valoritalia, a leader in wine certification with 37 offices throughout Italy, 219 certified designations of origin equal to 56% of national production of quality wines worth €9.23 billion (of which €5.3 billion is DOC, €2.6 billion is DOCG, and €1.2 billion is IGT, ed.). The study (7th edition), presented yesterday evening in Rome, highlighted the sector’s performance in 2024, emphasizing the solidity of the Italian wine market even in a decidedly uncertain international context such as the current one. The last five years have been compromised by a series of unexpected developments that continue to create economic uncertainty, including the Covid epidemic, two ongoing wars, and the recent threat of US tariffs. Of the three types into which the quality pyramid of Italian wines with designation of origin is divided, IGT wines, which had increased by 16.5% the previous year, contracted by 6.3%, although total volumes remain above the level reached in 2022. For the third consecutive year, DOCG wines suffered a loss (-2.3%), bringing volumes back to a level slightly higher than those recorded in 2019. Finally, DOC wines rose by 2.7%, almost entirely offsetting the losses of IGT and DOCG wines. The structural aspect also emerges as an important factor: the larger a designation is, the greater its stability on the market. Of the 219 designations certified by Valoritalia, the top 20 account for 86% of bottled wine and the top 40 for almost 95%, while the bottom 139 barely reach a meager 1.4%. Furthermore, 40% of all appellations generate a turnover of less than €1 million, while, on the other hand, only 26 appellations, or 12%, exceed €50 million. Valoritalia-certified production amounts to over 18.7 million hectoliters, of which 9.5 million are DOC, almost 4.1 million DOCG, and 5.1 million IGT. In terms of the value of bottled wine from the main DOCs certified by Valoritalia, the podium is dominated by Prosecco DOC (€2.8 million), ahead of Delle Venezie DOC (€979 million) and Conegliano Valdobbiadene Prosecco DOCG (€540 million).
“Despite the complex international context”, emphasized Giuseppe Liberatore, CEO of Valoritalia, “2024 is shaping up to be a year of consolidation, not brilliant but still positive, with 2.019 billion bottles placed on the market, a slight decrease compared to 2023 (0.46%) but an increase of 1.4% over the average of the last five years. This is a particularly significant figure that shows how the Italian supply chain is maintaining the high volumes of 2021, achieved with the unexpected boom in consumption during the Covid era, with over 110 million more bottles than in 2019, a sign of the competitiveness of our companies even in difficult times such as these”. According to Giuseppina Amodio, Chief Operating Officer of Valoritalia, “the data highlights a gradual realignment between supply and demand, in which the competitiveness of designations is no longer based solely on historical value, but on the ability to intercept consumption trends that are increasingly oriented towards versatility”. Francesco Liantonio, president of Valoritalia, added that “the high number of designations represents a strength in terms of representation, but also a structural limitation if the organizational and dimensional aspects related to the representation of consortia are not given sufficient attention. A limited size of the denomination implicitly entails an equally limited operational capacity of the same, which struggle to perform the fundamental functions of protection, promotion, and enhancement. For this reason, voluntary reform of the consortium system could now be the key to restoring unity to fragmented local decision-making. This direction is increasingly necessary, especially in this period of geopolitical uncertainty, declining consumption, and the continuing threat of US tariffs which, although not yet implemented, are already creating considerable uncertainty”.
On this topic, Nomisma - Wine Monitor has conducted a survey focusing on the value of certifications as perceived by producers and consumers, with a particular focus on Italy and Canada. This is an unprecedented study conducted on the one hand on the Italian production sector, with a sample of 147 wine companies, and on the other hand on over 2,000 consumers, highlighting the differences and similarities between Italian and Canadian respondents. According to the study, presented by Denis Pantini, head of Agrifood and Wine Monitor Nomisma, 47% of Italian companies exporting to the United States say they have already implemented strategies to diversify non-EU markets, identifying Canada, the United Kingdom, and Japan as the most promising countries. Italian wine exports continue to hold up well, thanks in part to growing interest from new markets such as Canada, where Italian labels are the most consumed among foreign wines (according to 51% of respondents), with imports to this country totaling €442 million. The survey also compared Italian and Canadian consumers in terms of purchasing behavior and expectations for the future of the sector. While the main drivers of choice in Italy are the territory and the Denomination of Origin, in Canada more value is placed on the winery’s brand. Still on the consumer side, attention was also focused on rising trends over the next three years: most respondents expressed growing interest in sparkling wines and low-alcohol wines, with 70% and 65% of consumers in both countries respectively. However, compared to Italians, Canadians show greater interest in rosé wines and mixology (74% of respondents consider it a growing trend, compared to 56% of Italians), but also greater sensitivity to criteria such as the use of lightweight glass bottles that protect the environment (78% of the sample compared to 65% of Italians). “In this scenario of great uncertainty for Italian wine”, concluded Denis Pantini, “the Nomisma Wine Monitor - Valoritalia Observatory has highlighted how, for Italian businesses and consumers, the role of certification remains decisive in the choice of which wine to buy. Among the growing trends, those related to green issues (and related certifications) represent the consumption drivers most likely to be successful in the future market (with sustainability outstripping organic), as do those of low-alcohol wines. In our country, however, alcohol-free wines do not seem to enjoy the same widespread approval. The main trend identified relates to green certifications, which are considered a priority for both Italian (81%) and Canadian (74%) consumers. This is a particularly relevant issue for companies in our country, where 42% say they have already implemented concrete initiatives on the subject and as many as 26% are certified with a sustainability standard.