AUSTRALIA'S $200 million prosecco wine industry, centred in the King Valley, sits on a "knife's edge", as it seeks to muster support to ensure the Australian Government fights to retain naming rights for the wine variety.
As part of free trade negotiations with Australia, the European Union (EU) is proposing changes to prosecco – and 54 other wine geographical areas (GI) – that would effectively prevent Australian producers from using the prosecco name.
The Federal Government this week opened a public objections process to enable it to take into account the full range of Australia's interests in considering the EU's requests.
Australian Grape and Wine Incorporated chief executive officer, Lee McLean, said it's "absolutely critical" the wine industry secures the maximum number of strong public objections to put forward to the government when negotiations ramp up next month.
"For us the public objections process provides a really good opportunity for the industry to state their case again when it comes to the prosecco grape variety, just like shiraz or chardonnay," he said.
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"We need everyone in North East Victoria, anyone with an interest in prosecco, or anyone with an interest in any of the other grape variety names out there who could potentially be under threat in the future to make a contribution into this process.
"A strong response to the public objections process with every prosecco producer lodging an objection would give a very strong signal to the Australian Government and also the European negotiators, showing this is a serious issue, something we're not willing to be pushed around on and protect our rights to use grape variety names like prosecco."
Natalie Pizzini, brand manager of King Valley winery Pizzini Wines, said the public objections process is an opportunity for the whole wine industry to step up and make a stance on maintaining the grape variety name before the "most important" stages of negotiations commence.
"Now it's only prosecco under doubt, but other grapes will follow," she said.
"We've sent an invitation for not only our grape growers and wine producers to get involved, we've sent it out to our distribution teams, wholesale customers and trade hospitality businesses because it impacts everyone.
"The decision is on a knife's edge, it could go either way, It could go down to the very last stroke of the pen.
"We have to say to the Department of Agriculture and Federal Government, we object to prosecco and the other 54 GIs being recognised as GIs, prosecco is a grape variety and that's what we need to get across."
Mr McLean said Australia Grape and Wine Incorporated will be working with members and state regional associations to ensure wine producers are firmly in front of mind when final decisions on the free trade agreement with the EU are made.
"There is a prosecco specific aspect to this we need to make a stand on, but the other thing we're really concerned about is that if a precedent is set," he said.
"If the grape variety prosecco is protected as a GI and we lose the right to use the grape variety name, we're really concerned that precedent will lead us down a path of potentially losing other grape variety names in the future.
"Especially the varieties the Italians have an interest in, like fiano and vermentino, there are a number of them, and I sincerely believe these are real risks for us if we don't hold the line on prosecco as a grape variety.
"If we get a strong enough response, and we believe we've got a really compelling argument, I think it's going to go a long way to providing our negotiators with confidence to know the industry is right behind this issue and there's no room for rolling over on the issue from the government's perspective."
Under the public objection submission form stakeholders will have the opportunity to make an objection on four grounds for any of the 55 GIs proposed to be implemented by the EU.
The public objections process will be open for four weeks, closing 12pm Friday, April 21.
Stakeholders can lodge a submission via https://haveyoursay.agriculture.gov.au/public–objections–process based on the grounds of objection.
To learn more about GIs and the public objections process, the department will be running online information sessions throughout the public objections process: https://haveyoursay.agriculture.gov.au/public–objections–process.
