The resolution projects were submitted to parliament after July 2, the day when small and medium producers protested in Régua to highlight difficulties in selling grapes at low prices amid rising production costs.
“The Douro Demarcated Region (RDD) is facing a deep crisis in the wine sector, marked by an excess of wine stocks, a significant reduction in the benefits for Port wine production, and an inability to sell viticultural produce over the past two years, leading to income loss and, in dramatic cases, the abandonment of unharvested grapes,” stated Rui Santos (PS) during a debate in the National Assembly.
The parliamentarian warned that the 2025 harvest could be even more dire than that of 2024. He called for a financial support line for winemakers and stated that “the same State that injected billions to save private companies cannot wash its hands when the Douro is calling for help.”
MP Paula Santos (PCP) criticized the “passivity of the Government in the face of the crisis the RDD is facing” and called for urgent measures such as setting minimum indicative prices, maintaining benefits, and limiting bulk wine imports.
The benefit, which refers to the amount of must each producer can allocate to Port wine production, was 90,000 pipa (550 liters each) in 2024 and 104,000 in 2023. For the current year, the trade sector proposed a reduction to 68,000 pipa in the interprofessional council of the Institute of Douro and Port Wines (IVDP).
Pedro Frazão (Chega) noted that Douro producers are “tired of empty promises.” His party proposes a financial credit line with subsidized interest for cooperatives and companies in Douro, and calls for the government to distill the surplus wine produced in the region, utilizing the resulting brandy for Port wine production.
According to Inês Sousa Real (PAN), the “public response is delayed.” She challenged the Government to improve transparency in labeling and certification, suggested that surplus grapes be purchased by municipalities for local canteens, and advocated for a plan to mitigate and adapt the sector to climate change effects.
Representing IL, Mário Amorim Lopes stated that “global consumption of Port wine has decreased 32% since 2000” and argued that “increasing the benefit in this context would be highly irresponsible.” He supports a voluntary reorganization program of wine production in RDD, allowing vineyard removal with benefit rights reallocation to other plots.
João Almeida, from CDS-PP, recalled measures from Luís Montenegro’s government, such as increased oversight, prohibition of wine product entries from outside the region, and unlocking funds from IVDP. However, he emphasized the need for continued measures at an international promotion level to help “sell production at prices that effectively compensate viticulturists’ activities.”
Fernando Queiroga (PSD) emphasized that the focus “is indeed on solving people’s problems,” noted that the “Government has been working for months on a specific plan for Douro,” and stressed that the “priority is to ensure a fair income for producers.”
Mariana Mortágua (BE) reminded of the threat of tariff increases by the U.S. President, while Jorge Pinto (Livre) called for “new solutions,” and Filipe Sousa (JPP) mentioned a merchant who said it is completely unfeasible to continue in the market under the same conditions as the previous year due to full stock.
