Global Wine Sector Faces Crisis—Can AI Offer a Solution?

Industry News 

The global wine industry is currently grappling with a severe crisis due to multiple converging factors:​

• Adverse weather conditions damaging vineyards
• Rising living costs impacting profitability
• Declining exports
• Plummeting grape prices resulting from oversupply in key markets such as Australia, France, Chile, and the United States​.

The situation has become so dire that vintners worldwide are destroying grape inventories worth hundreds of millions of dollars and repurposing vineyard lands for alternative agricultural uses.​

In Spain’s Rioja region, a similar scenario is unfolding. To address these challenges, the Rioja Winegrowers and Producers Association has adopted an AI-driven platform to manage all vineyards across the province.​

This AI platform monitors approximately 1,600 agricultural parameters—ranging from land data to satellite imagery—across tens of thousands of vineyard plots in the region. The goal is to enhance economic efficiency and improve grape quality.​

The Drinks Business, February 11, 2025