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Organic viticulture in West Germany

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  30 October 2009

Stephan Dabbert  and
Jürgen Oberhofer
Stephan Dabbert
Affiliation:
Research and Teaching Associates with the Department of Agricultural Economics (410A), University of Hohenheim, Postfach 70 05 62, 7000 Stuttgart 70, West Germany.
Jürgen Oberhofer
Affiliation:
Research and Teaching Associates with the Department of Agricultural Economics (410A), University of Hohenheim, Postfach 70 05 62, 7000 Stuttgart 70, West Germany.
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Abstract

We present results from a survey of organic grape operations in the three most important grape-producing areas in West Germany. Data on expenses for fertilizers, pesticides, machinery and buildings, on labor requirements, on the quantity and quality of yields, and on marketing channels and price premiums are compared to data on conventional grape operations from statistical sources. Based on these data, multi-period linear programming models were constructed to assess the economic implications of a transition to organic grape growing for different types of operations. Model results indicate that the grape production quota implemented in West Germany in 1989-90 favors organic methods. However, with direct marketing of wine, the effect of the quota depends on the effect that the expected rise in the price of conventional wine has on the price of organic wine. Premium prices for organically produced wine currently can be achieved only by farms that sell their wine directly to the consumer, which means that direct marketing is necessary for a profitable organic grape operation under current market conditions.

Type
Articles
Information
American Journal of Alternative Agriculture , Volume 5 , Issue 3 , September 1990 , pp. 106 - 113
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1990

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