Kirchner Succeeds in Mexico

Esta entrada escrita en castellano viene próximamente.

So Argentine President Nestor Kirchner’s visit to Mexico earlier this week to fortify economic ties has produced at least one key agreement. Mexico will lower wine tariffs and in turn will receive “scientific and technological assistance” from Argentine enologists. Although I’ve written at length about the rapid increase in the consumption of Argentine wine in the U.S. over the past couple of months, “vino argentino” has also made a lot of progress throughout the Americas.

As reported in the Mendoza-based newspaper Los Andes (and later posted on the “El Malbec” blog), Argentina is now the leading wine exporter to Brazil. Having recently overcome competitors in Europe and Chile, Argentina and Brazil are working hand-in-hand to promote wine consumption in the country of 150 million people. Brazil’s current wine consumption is an extremely low 1.8 liters per person each year. Similar to the 2003 PEVI Law passed in Argentina intended to increase wine exports and reinvigorate the industry after having suffered setbacks for decades, Brazil is looking for a federally funded program to further develop their own budding wine industry as well as grow the domestic consumption rate.

As Juan Carlos Pina, the director of Wine Cellars of Argentina and one of the members of a recent Argentine delegation sent to Brazil said, “We are working together [with the Brazilians]. If we can increase consumption to one liter more per capita annually in Brazil, Argentina will also benefit.”

Source: "Argentina ya es el primer exportador de vinos a Brasil." June 28, 2007. Los Andes. By Luis Fermosel.