The Government has today announced support of around 12 million euros for Douro wine growers who, in this campaign, are unable to drain their agricultural production.
© Lusa
04/09/2026
by
Lusa
“Twe also love a measure concerning support for wine growers in the Douro region, and I will explain to you why specifically the Douro, which is a support of about 12 million euros for those who, in this campaign, cannot drain their agricultural production”, said the Minister of the Presidency, António Leitão Amaro.
At the press conference after today’s Council of Ministers, the minister said that this is a “timely solution for this year, which is different from the solutions of previous years, which were support solutions for distillation”.
“ Here is support for the non-exhaustion of production, a maximum amount of EUR 12 million, but the decision is already taken that, for the future, the solution for the Douro region should be a structural solution, from the creation of a permanent fund that seeks to help and manage these fluctuations and these difficulties in the market”, he added.
About the reason for this specific support for this region, António Leitão Amaro explained that “Douro has unique characteristics regarding the landscape where production is carried out and that make it much more difficult to replace with another culture”.
“And therefore, the Douro region and its producers have special difficulties and this is a different measure from previous years, with significant value, is different from what will last for the future with the new fund, but it is important to support this sector and this region in this sector,” he stressed.
After last year's production in the Douro had grown up to 178,000 barrels of wine (550 liters each), the problems of the disposal of grapes again worsened this year.
There are winegrowers who complain that they have no buyers, others that they have only secured the grapes of the benefit, that is, the quantity of must that each can allocate for the production of Port wine, and generally also complain about the low price at which the grape is paid.
For this harvest, it was unanimously approved by the interprofessional council of the Instituto do Douro e Porto (IVDP) a benefit of 76,000 kites, plus 1,000 more than last year, which represents a commitment made by the parties (trade and production), but it does not mean that companies are obliged to drain the grapes.
On the other hand, operators warn of full stocks and breaks in wine sales.
On Wednesday, grapes were dumped on the street, in front of the headquarters of the Instituto dos Vinhos do Douro and Porto, in Peso da Régua (Vila Real), in a symbolic protest that wanted to alert to the crisis that affects small and doctors producers Durian.