Azerbaijani government aims to increase national wine production by 2024, boosting the profitability and export potential of this industry, Azernews portal reports.
Winemaking occupies one of the most important places in the food industry in Azerbaijan. The country is famous for its high quality grape varieties. At present, about 40 wineries operate in Azerbaijan, producing natural wine, sparkling wine, liqueur, brandy, vodka, ethyl alcohol, cognac, etc.
According to government forecasts, wine production will reach 1,695,400 decaliters by the end of 2019, demonstrating a 13% increase compared to 2018. Wine production is projected to reach 2,027,900 decaliters in 2020, 2,189,300 decaliters in 2021, 2,376,200 decaliters in 2022, and 2,651,300 decaliters in 2023. Thus, by 2024, wine production in Azerbaijan will increase by 56.4% compared to 2019.
Most of national wine producers target Russian and European markets as well as new markets for Azerbaijani wine such as China.