Ciudad Real
May 6 - 8, 2025
09
may 2007
Today Nemesio de Lara, President of the Provincial Government of Ciudad Real, has inaugurated the seminar "Wine: Culture, Nutrition and Health", organized by the COAG-Iniciativa Rural. The seminar has been organized in the company of the Interim Secretary General of the Castilla-La Mancha organization, Apolonio Moreno; along with Alejandro García-Gasco, of the State Executive Committee; and the Vice President of the Provincial Institution, Angel Amador.
Nemesio de Lara started his lecture by explaining that the Institution he presides does not hold competence in agriculture-livestock raising matters, but that he actually started FENAVIN knowing that it was necessary to set one's shoulder to the wheel to help a sector that had problems. Along this line, the Provincial Government President champions unity from within the sector itself, which we considers "essential" before the new Common Market Organization of Wine or in view of confronting matters such as the liberalization that is to take place in 2013, or a reduction in the consumption of wine.
Pertaining to this matter, he explained that according to a recent study, a third of young people aged 25 to 35 regularly consume wine, as compared to a third who have never tried or nor will they try it due to the complexity it involves. Thus he wagered on educating the younger generation in a culture of wine, in a simple and attractive manner, with "wild campaigns" that create awareness in them towards moderate consumption. "We should have more hedonistic type tasting sessions so that the younger generation will not feel that consuming wine is a complicated affair", he insisted, concluding by saying that he believes "in the future of wine" and that "if he had not directly experienced the problem of the vine and wine practically from the cradle, FENAVIN would not exist now".
On his part Apolonio García congratulated the Provincial Government for their investment in FENAVIN and ESPAÑA ORIGINAL "because this is money that will be recuperated with profit", apart from underlining the aid that the Protected Geographical Indications have received from the provincial institution for their diffusion both in our country and abroad.
The Secretary of the COAG-IR took advantage of the presence of about 200 cooperative members to remind them that, if in his opinion, the region's wine sector is working very well, proof of which can be seen in the numerous awards that have been obtained during the past season,. Amongst the 25 main operators in Spain not a single cooperative is to be found, when these have 70% of the production, which is a point "in which we are failing".
According to García, traceability must be implanted to follow how purchases and sales are taking place, to defend the producers from the frequent delays in payment they suffer and to defend them in the protection of their rights.
Alejandro García-Gasco mentioned that he was quite aware that an increase in the consumption of alcohol on the part of young people is indeed a problem, however, he does not consider that this problem is in any way linked to wine, because "wine is part of our culture, our history and our tradition. It sustains green landscapes, it is the economic motor and it is a healthy food product if consumed with responsibility". García insisted that the objective should be to reach society and make the multiple facets of wine known to all. Confronted with the great changes that await the sector just around the corner, the real challenge, he assured, lies in reaching the consumer.
Likewise during his lecture he requested a transparent Market Law in which to report the enormous price differences that exist from origin to destination, reminding that "we must not forget and relax", simply because the Law on Consumption of Alcohol, which was only regulated by taking into account the point of view of health, has been paralyzed. He finally added that the objective behind the seminar that was being held, apart from dealing on matters involving a healthy life style, was in fact to find out about the initiatives for promotion that are being developed in Castilla-La Mancha.
The first speaker to intervene was Carmen González, Professor Emeritus of Pharmacology for the Faculty of Medicine at the Castilla-La Mancha University. González started by explaining the harmful effects that excessive consumption of alcohol can have on our health, underlining the importance of moderate and responsible consumption, which in turn contributes numerous benefits to our health. Thus she recommended two glasses of wine a day, preferably red wine rather than white wine, during meals and always when dangerous activities are not to follow the meal.
After her intervention a round table started, under the title of "Initiatives for Promotion of Castilla-La Mancha Wine", which was moderated by Fernando Prieto, President of the Valdepeñas Denomination of Origin Regulation Council. The round table counted with José Luis Parreño, of the COAG-IR C-LM; Antonio Salinas, Spokesman for Agriculture for the Socialist Party Group in the Regional Parliament; Francisco González, manager of the Castilla-La Mancha Tierra de Viñedos Foundation; Lorenzo Serrano, Representative for Promotion of the La Mancha Wines Denomination of Origin Regulation Council; Angel Villafranca, President of Bodegas Asociadas Cooperativas UCAMAN; and Patricia Franco, of the FENAVIN Business Center. According to Prieto, the idea behind the table was to become a reflection of how different authorities and institutions are championing the promotion and dissemination of wine, contributing with different overviews.
After their intervention it was the turn of Alfonso Marín, of the COAG-IR C-LM, and Federico López, Director General of Food Markets for the Agriculture Department of the Regional Government of Castilla-La Mancha, who undertook the Regional Strategic Plan for the Viticulture Sector. This Plan, as explained by Marín, is the regional Government's response in support of the sector before situations such as the future Common Market Organization of Wine. According to Alfonso Marín, they are in favor of voluntary elimination of vines, of the transformation that is being carried out in Holland for food purposes, but not for burning of alcohol or green harvesting. Marín also made a call to the sector so that by the year 2013 the entire sector can walk together hand-in-hand.
Finally, it is foreseen that this afternoon the guests to the seminar will visit the rest of the trade fair to "explain how some of the things that have been made known today, both on the part of the public institutions, as well as the private ones, can actually be put into practice", summarized Rafael Juárez, Technician for the COAG-IR C-LM.
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