Brexit is about moments like this, says the responsible state secretary: wine in pint bottles. This should accelerate the growth of the industry. Cheers!
In British pubs, beer glasses usually hold one pint – that’s 0.568 liters. In the future, people in Great Britain will be able to buy wine and sparkling wine in pint bottles again. As the Ministry of Economic Affairs in London announced on Wednesday, 0.568 liter bottles are approved in addition to 0.2 and 0.5 liter bottles. This applies to pubs and restaurants as well as supermarkets. This gave buyers more flexibility and choice. The ministry emphasized that the reason for the change was the “Brexit freedoms”. With the exit from the EU, the industry is no longer bound to EU regulations.
In the United Kingdom, pint-sized bottles of sparkling wine were sold until it joined the EU in 1973. Production was then stopped because they did not meet EU weight and measurement regulations, as reported by the British news agency PA. The ministry emphasized that the 900 British wineries were now given more freedom. In addition, 0.2 liter bottles of wine and 0.5 liter bottles of sparkling wine can now be sold – which was previously not permitted. However, there is no obligation to use these sizes. Beer, cider and milk are already available in pint bottles and containers.
Business Secretary Kevin Hollinrake said the announcement would allow producers and consumers more innovation, freedom and choice. “Our exit from the EU has been all about moments like this, where we can seize new opportunities and give a real boost to our great British wineries and further economic growth,” Hollinrake said. Industry body Wine GB welcomed the move.
Critics of the conservative government
Critics, however, accuse the conservative government of wanting to use the populist measure in the year of a likely parliamentary election to please traditional voters and to distract from much more serious problems such as the high cost of living. The Tories are always talking about alleged Brexit freedoms, but there are hardly any real positive changes. Market experts also emphasized that it was unlikely that French, Italian or German winemakers would introduce different bottle sizes specifically for the British market.
Wine production in Britain is still tiny compared to countries like Germany, but has grown significantly in recent years. In 2022, around 12.2 million bottles of wine and sparkling wine were produced, an increase of 130 percent compared to 2017. The vast majority of wineries are in England.
The industry hopes that Brexit will enable faster growth. In May, the government lifted restrictions that prevented the production of new blends. Bottlers are also now allowed to convert imported wine into sparkling wine. Regulations on packaging – such as sealing films for certain sparkling wines – have also been ended to allow for cheaper alternatives.
However, the government is backpedaling on another point that former Prime Minister Boris Johnson promoted as freedom from Brexit. After “careful consideration,” she said she would not initiate legislation to change the units of measurement. The plans would allow retailers to display the weight of their products in imperial units such as pounds and ounces, as they previously did, instead of metric units such as kilograms.
Brexit supporters had hailed the plan as an “end to metric martyrdom”. But as the Ministry of Economic Affairs announced, surveys showed that 98.7 percent want to continue using the metric system.
Source: Stern
