In the EU, wines can be red, white or rosé, but "green" viticulture is rare, according to the ECA.
The European auditor laments that despite the large sums involved, the wine policy has barely contributed to a better environment. While in agricultural policy, tens of percentages are shifted towards eco-schemes and nature objectives, only about five percent of the subsidy in the wine industry is earmarked for that.
Financial support also leads to only a slight improvement in the competitive position compared to non-EU countries.
Over the past ten years, about 500 million euros annually in EU funds have been spent to help winegrowers, but there is little evidence that the financial support has actually helped the climate or the sector as a whole, concluded the European Court of Auditors (ECA).
Within the framework of the Common Agricultural Policy, wine producers can receive financial support to restructure their vineyards, to make them more competitive, and to install systems to reduce their ecological footprint.
The five countries visited by auditors – Spain, France, Italy, Greece, and the Czech Republic – accounted for 70% of the EU's restructuring payments. Funding was simply approved for all eligible requests, without applying "criteria to select projects to promote competitiveness," according to the auditors.
"In practice, the projects were not aimed at reducing the climate and/or environmental impact of viticulture. Under certain circumstances, we even saw that they could have the opposite effect, such as switching to varieties that require more water, installing irrigation systems," said the auditors.
"Promoting the competitiveness of the wine sector is essential and particularly relevant for the EU, but it must go hand in hand with improved environmental sustainability," said Joëlle Elvinger, the ECA member who led the audit. "In any case, we can say that the EU still needs to deliver on both objectives."