Geneva proposes payment to winegrowers to avoid losing its vineyards

Geneva proposes an alternative to grubbing up vines Keystone-SDA

Faced with a major crisis in Swiss winegrowing, the canton of Geneva wants to introduce an alternative to uprooting grape vines.

The canton will pay CHF 18,000 (about $22,741) per hectare per year to maintain the plots, but with no obligation to produce grapes. The aim is to preserve vineyards. This aid will apply to a maximum of 10% of declared wine-growing areas, the canotnal government said on Wednesday at the end of its weekly meeting. It will require an amendment to the cantonal regulations on vineyards and wines.

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In addition to a change in the regulations, on Wednesday the cantonal government submitted to the Finance Committee a request for a supplementary credit of CHF2.3 million as a subsidy for 2026.

Transitional aid

The bill proposed a transitional financial aid for two years “to maintain production facilities, in the hope that the Swiss government will lower the quotas for wines from abroad.

The canton of Geneva has almost 1,400 hectares of vineyards, the result of decades of investment. They are a key element of the canton’s landscape and heritage.

However, over 90% of the vineyards are located in protected wine-growing zones, which means that these areas cannot be converted to other crops. Furthermore, the law requires vines to be maintained in order to avoid phytosanitary risks.

Adapted from French by AI/ac

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