Wine law, sustainable innovation and the emergence of a wine constitution

Abstract

Innovation is essential for addressing the current challenges of the wine sector and ensuring its sustainable future. Law plays a pivotal role in fostering and disseminating innovation. At the same time, innovations can present legislators with significant challenges and cause legal disruption. This paper evaluates the innovativeness of European Wine Law in light of the ongoing sustainability transformation. The focus of EU regulations is wine quality and authenticity, mainly through the protection of Geographical Indications (GIs). In Regulation (EU) 2021/2117, the EU legislator recently introduced new rules on fungus-resistant grape varieties, de-alcoholised products, and digital labelling. We describe the effects of these rules on the respective innovation systems and assess how, vice versa, these innovations exert disruptive pressure on wine law. While the legal framework shows remarkable flexibility, a reconfiguration seems necessary at the level of GIs. The sustainability transformation implies an openness to innovation even for traditional producers. Regulatory Sandboxes in GI product specifications could allow for more experimentation without compromising heritage. A wine constitution could guide the transformation towards a more resilient and sustainable wine system.