⏱ 2 min read
Background
The wine sector in French-speaking Switzerland is going through a crisis that specialists consider structural. Wine consumption is stagnating, with a downward trend, and competition from foreign wines is intensifying. The bulk wine market, which provided regular sales to many producers, has almost disappeared. The withdrawal of major French-speaking Swiss players contributed to this.
The key points
Speaking on RTS's La Matinale on Friday 13 November 2026, Olivier Viret, director of the canton of Vaud's wine competence centre, called on the industry to reinvent itself. He recommends focusing more on exports, an option that in his view has been “neither discussed nor exploited” so far.
Wine growers and producers should refocus on high value-added products. Olivier Viret also calls for winning back the German-speaking Swiss market and better convincing consumers around Lake Geneva. He will step down at the end of November 2026 to retire.
Key figures
- 0,5 % : share of Swiss wine production exported
- 65 million euros : Italian aid to export its wines outside the European Union
What it means for businesses
- Wine growers and producers : a business plan refocused on exceptional wines
- Merchants and exporters : foreign outlets that remain underdeveloped
Who says what
- Olivier Viret (Vaud wine competence centre): in Switzerland, nobody considers State aid for wine exports, unlike Italy
- Olivier Viret : the industry did not sufficiently anticipate changes in demand
Further reading
Sources
- RTS – Wine crisis in Switzerland: exports still to be developed
- 24 heures – Wine: Switzerland must focus on exports, argues an expert
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