As we reported three weeks ago, Slovenian media reported, citing unnamed sources in Brussels, that the EC had requested Croatia to temporarily put a new bill on hold which would allow Croatia to label wine showing the sort of grape used to produce it.
And it appears that Slovenia’s Minister of Agriculture Dejan Židan has kept the promise he made at the time, as he will meet with European Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development Phil Hogan on Thursday to express his opposition to a compromise solution that would allow Croatian wine producers in Istria to sell Istrian Teran wine on the common EU market. “I have requested the meeting because we are opposed to the planned solution from Brussels which would allow Croatia to use the name of Teran as an exception, Židan told a press conference prior to going to Brussels. My main message to Commissioner Hogan will be that he should be aware that this issue is very important for Slovenia and that it has first-class political significance,” Židan said. “The fight for Teran is essential for us. It represents the struggle for Slovenia’s position in the European Union,” he said, adding that Slovenia demands exclusive geographic protection of its wine at the EU level. “We are united on that matter in Slovenia and prepared for various scenarios,” he said.
The compromise proposal that was reported would allow Croatia to label its Teran wine – “Hrvatska Istra” and “Teran” in smaller font to distinguish Slovenia’s Refosk wine and Croatia’s Teran wine which originates from Istria. This news has left us wondering if Croatian politicians are actually doing any informal lobbying in Brussels, because there doesn’t seem to be any news that any moves have been done on the record by Croatian politicians in this situation.
