Portuguese wine exports surge to UK, though future growth could be constrained

Portuguese wine exports to the UK have jumped by 8% in value and almost 7% in volume since 2019 according to the country’s Vine and Wine Institute.  

Last year, Portugal shipped a total of 98m Euros and 27 million litres of wine to the UK, accounting for 2.5% of all wine imported into the country, the largest share since 2010. This makes the UK the third largest importer of Portuguese wines in the world, after France and the US.  

However, the current economic and political situation in Europe which is creating major headaches for wine producers, such as the soaring cost of goods and supply chain issues may compromise the industry’s aim of reaching one billion Euros of wine by 2023 according to Frederico Falcão, President of the Wines of Portugal.

“Although with some breaks during these months, and the war [in Ukraine] that led to the lack of raw material, compromising production and causing some constraints on distribution, exports showed a positive result for Portuguese wines,” he said. “For Portugal, it is very important to see our exports growing in value and average price, as this is the position we are looking for in all our key markets, including the UK.” 

Globally, between January and September 2022, exports of Portuguese wines reached 677.3 million euros, showing a growth in value of 0.97% and in average price of 1.57%, and a drop in volume in the order of 0.59% compared to the same period in 2021. 

Regarding wine exports by wine region, Port Wine was the most exported in this period, but the Dão region recorded the highest percentage growth compared to the previous year, up by over a fifth (22.5%). 

Photography: Wines of Porgugal