Scordamaglia urges EU to keep tariff talks going; wine and spirits exemption must be a priority

Rome – Luigi Scordamaglia, CEO of Filiera Italia, urged the EU to “continue negotiating as the European Commission” in response to news that wine and spirits remain excluded from tariff exemptions imposed by the US for the time being.

“Including wine and spirits in the list of goods exempt from a 15 percent tariff must be a priority,” said the CEO. “If we consider that 80 percent of the Italian wine exported to the US is purchased from wineries at five euros, such a high tariff, combined with the devaluation of the dollar, would push the shelf price to around 20 dollars, which would be an excessive penalty for our product.”

“Von der Leyen, wake up. At a time when Germany is brazenly negotiating for its exclusive interests, tariffs on German steel and the automotive sector, the European Commission must make it clear that including wine and spirits in the list of products exempt from tariffs is a priority for Europe,” Scordamaglia concluded.

According to Filiera Italia, the value of Italian wine exports to the US in 2024 was approximately EUR 1.9 billion, representing 24 percent of total Italian wine exports.

English version by the Translation Service of Withub