The Cava DO adopts new urgent measures to support the sector in view of the effects caused by the Covid-19 pandemic

Vilafranca del Penedès, 15 April 2020.- In light of the health and economic crisis situation arisen from the Covid-19 pandemic, the Cava DO has approved a new series of urgent measures in order to mitigate the effects this situation is causing to the sector.

These actions represent an initial package which is adopted and of an exceptional and imminent nature, and has been approved with room for modifications, i.e. with a view to it being adapted and complemented through subsequent measures, if possible, based on the upcoming developments.

The President of the Cava DO, Javier Pagés, wishes to remind us of the exceptional nature of these times and conveys a message of optimism. “If all stakeholders come together, the Cava sector, as in other occasions throughout its history, will once again demonstrate its strength and will to succeed”, he stated.

The measures are as follows:

Aid for the operators

• Moratorium in the payment of the mandatory financial contributions during the first half of 2020.
• 60-day moratorium for the payment of the quality labels related to the first quarter of 2020.
• A 15% reduction of the mandatory financial contributions for all operators within the Cava Denomination of Origin.
• Development of online educational actions specifically focused on effective management for the various social media channels, aimed for the wineries that are members of the Cava DO.

Scope of control and assurance

• Strengthening of the level of control and assurance regarding production for the 2020 grape harvest.

Scope of communication and promotion

• Allocation of an additional 600,000 euros for communication and promotion, sourced from own funds and subsidies received from the OCM and destined to compensate for the loss of revenue. The Cava DO considers this to be a priority area and has driven several campaigns on the website and social media, highlighting a competition for recipes paired with Cava.
• Enhancing digital actions through various social media channels.

Scope of support from public authorities

In parallel, the Cava DO has agreed to claim from the public authorities for the following series of aid and requests:

• Request for direct public aid for crisis distillation in order to reduce excess base wine for Cava.
• Request for extraordinary direct public aid for wineries and for the Cava DO, aimed at promotion in both the internal market and abroad.
• Request for an extension in the term for replanting.
• Request for uprooting vines.

With these measures, the Cava DO hopes to mitigate the impact of Covid-19 in the sector, acknowledging the needs of all stakeholders and collaborating towards a sustainable future and growth.