Despite the continued political wrangling on both sides of the negotiations that will eventually see the UK leave the EU, there is growing confidence amongst the international wine community that trade deals can be done that are good for businesses both in the UK, the EU and the rest of the world. 

That was the key takeaway from the headline Brexit debate at last month’s Vinexpo, the international wine exhibition held in Bordeaux. 

The debate saw two of the global wine industry’s key figures in co-ordinating its representations to the UK and EU, both publicly agree on the best possible scenario from the negotiations. Namely nothing.

No change please
Both Miles Beale, chief executive of the Wine & Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) and Jean Marie Barillere, president of the Comité Européen des Enterprise Vins (CEEV), which represents the interests of EU wine companies and bodies, said they wanted to see “as little change as possible” to current trading arrangements from any Brexit deal.

Beale hoped it would be one big “non event”. 

The Brexit negotiations might only be in the early stages, but already Beale said he could sense the noises coming from both sides favoured the idea of an initial deal being done that then, crucially, allows for a longer transitional period in order for the minutiae of trading arrangements to be finalised. 

“We want to see trade as free and as unrestricted as possible,” said Beale. 

Significant step
He pointed to comments from the UK’s Chancellor, Philip Hammond, that he believes in a transitional period for trade deals to be done is good news for the wine industry as it means the UK’s exit from the EU can be phased in over a number of years. 

Giving producers, distributors, retailers and wholesalers more time to make longer-term arrangements. 

“It is the first time we have heard that and it’s a significant step,” said Beale.

Transistional period
It would effectively give both the UK and the EU a number of years beyond March 2019, when the UK officially leaves, to carry on negotiating agreed trade deals. 

“That is the best for the business community to deal with,” said Beale.

But Beale and Barillerie are not convinced they can rely on politicians to get a trade deal right that affects the buying and selling of wine around the world. 

Matters in own hands
It is why WSTA and CEEV are both part of a world wine group’s efforts to develop trading blueprints for how different countries can work together post-Brexit. 

Deals that can be fast-tracked and put in place by governments as soon as a Brexit deal is agreed. 

Sean Allison, a Bordeaux producer who runs Chateau du Seuil, said you only have to look at what happened in his native New Zealand when the UK pulled out of a trade deal in 1973 over its dairy products. 

He said: “It took 30 odd years of hard negotiation to get new free trade agreements. I would say to everyone in the UK to be very careful about the timetable. It takes five or six years of hard
negotiation, and then you have to implement the agreement.”

Stability for business 
Whatever deal is agreed the key for business, argued Andrew Shaw, group wine buying director at Conviviality PLC, the  UK’s biggest wine importer and distributor, said the key was to build stability and take uncertainty out of the current trading environment. 

He called for a “roadmap” that industry can follow that will then bring some level of “sustainability” and “clarity” to the international wine market. “We need future trade to be as simple and effective as it is now,” said Shaw.

Support for the UK
Vinexpo chief executive Guillaume Deglise used the debate to re-inforce its support for the UK and to stress how important it remains such an important global market for wine. 

“The UK is in the top two of countries’ wine exports and the trading power of UK wine buyers is formidable,” he said. 

The final word goes to the WSTA’s Beale: “Vinexpo Bordeaux provided an excellent platform to discuss the future of our trading landscape. It also showed how much support there is from the European wine industry for a negotiated outcome. It’s not about geography or politics. A successful Brexit is essential for the livelihoods of everyone in our industry.”