Almost half a year after its first bill was vetoed in parliament, the government has adopted a new wine bill that envisages the determination of three wine regions in the country.
Just like the first version, the main aim of this proposal is boosting the competitiveness of Slovenian wineries. This will be done by cutting red tape, Agriculture Minister Marija Lukacic told the press after Thursday's cabinet session.
Another key component of the bill is a cut in the number of wine regions from 14 to 9 (Goriska brda, Vipavska Valley, Karst, Slovenian Istria, Dolenjsko, Bela krajina, Prekmurje, Stajersko and Bizeljsko).
In its first version of the bill, the government envisaged three wine regions but coalition parties passed an amendment during the parliamentary procedure that reduced the number to two.
This prompted the National Council to veto the act once it was passed and lawmakers decided not to override the will of the councillors in a renewed vote.
"We concluded that there was a general desire for three regions," Lukacic explained on Thursday. The three regions are Primorsko, Posavje and Podravje.
Another important novelty in the law is the introduction of Romance designation of origin. According to Lukacic, this means that winegrowers can draw up a document which determines the region, sort, technology and character of the wine under a certain name, and market it under that name.
Moreover, there will be "traditional terms" which would be easier to understand for non-Slovenian consumers. For example, the term "vrhunsko vino" (supreme wine) will be replaced with "eminentno vino".
According to Lukacic, the wine bill, which is in compliance with EU regulations, also defines vineyards where it is prohibited to grow self-propagated varieties; changes the thresholds for natural alcohol content; and envisages an independent winery inspection.
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