Belgian wine has had a bad year. Production decreased by more than a quarter in 2021 due to the bad weather conditions. This is according to figures from the Federal Public Service Economy.
In 2020, the Belgian winegrowers still clocked in at a production of just under two million litres. A year later, that figure dropped significantly (-27 percent) to about 1.35 million litres. The drop was most pronounced for red wine, where production fell by half. Only the rosé and the sparkling rosé remained almost stable.
The sharp decline in wine production is mainly attributed to the bad weather conditions of the past year. There was late frost in the spring, a soggy summer that brought along various fungi and bird plagues in the late summer.
Nevertheless, there was also good news in 2021: the profession of Belgian winegrower is still on the rise. In 2021, 237 winegrowers were registered compared to 198 a year earlier. This concerns both professional and amateur winegrowers. The largest increase took place in the provinces of Liège (from 21 to 32 winegrowers) and East Flanders (from 22 to 28 winegrowers). Just under two out of three winegrowers are still in Flanders, although Wallonia is catching up strongly.
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