Wine is a vast international business, spanning more than half the globe in terms of grape growing and wine production and with followers and markets in almost every country (Johnson 1989). The Office International de la Vigne et du Vin (OIV) reports that world wine production increased by 7.5 per cent in 1996, with the largest wine-producing countries being Italy, France, Spain and Portugal. The OIV also notes that the worldwide area under vines has stabilized after gradually declining since 1980.

In Europe, the area under vines has declined in Italy, France, Moldova and Portugal, while New World wine producers such as the United States, Argentina, Chile and Australia experienced significant increases. Similarly, world wine consumption has also stabilized since a gradual decline in the 1980s and early 1990s. In 1996 the top four wine-consuming nations were France, Italy, the United States and Germany, who between them consume about half of the world s wine. Tables 2.1 and 2.2 detail the major wine-producing regions in terms of total production and percentage of world production, and total area of winegrapes for the period 1994 to 1996. The number of countries which produce wine is quite remarkable, although it should be noted that much of this wine will be for domestic consumption while much will also be for cheaper bulk wines. However, the extent of production does help illustrate the competitive nature of the international wine market. Tables 2.3 and 2.4 indicate the consumption of wine in terms...