OIV - The General Assembly of the OIV elects Claudia Inés Quini as President of the Organisation

OIV - 22/06/2012 - As from 23 June 2012, Ms. Claudia Inés Quini (Argentina) will replace Mr. Yves Bénard (France) at the head of the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV), the intergovernmental reference organization in the vitivinicultural domain.

Ms. Quini has been elected President of the OIV for a three-year term. The election took place during the 10th General Assembly of the Organisation, which was held in the Turkish coastal city of Izmir the 22 June 2012, immediately following the XXXV World Congress of Vine and Wine.

Born in the Argentinean region of Mendoza, Claudia Inés Quini holds a university degree in Chemical Engineering from the Universidad Tecnológica Nacional, and has specialized further in management and research in the vitivinicultural domain. She is also the Deputy Head of Research at the National Institute for Vitiviniculture of Argentina (INV).

“We need to revise OIV strategic priorities to get a closer picture of the wine market, in order to be able to anticipate future trends such as, for example, the growing demand for low-alcohol or de-alcoholised beverages of vitivinicultural origin”, said Ms. Quini in her first statement as President of the OIV. “Without forgetting to increase the appreciation of traditional wine”, she added.

“The OIV is also playing an active role in the development of a sustainable vitiviniculture, as shown by the adoption of a set of principles to establish a carbon calculator protocol specific for the grape, raisins and wine industry ”, said Ms. Quini. “We will ensure that this sustainability model also addresses social and economic concerns”, she added.

“We will also work to enlarge the Organisation through the incorporation of emerging countries as Member States, and I am looking forward to Asia and the Americas in particular”, said also Ms. Quini. As of 23 June 2012, the OIV is made of 45 Member States which represent nearly 80% of the global wine production.

Once the results of the elections had been publicly displayed, the national delegates attending the OIV General Assembly in Izmir greeted with an ovation Mr. Yves Bénard, who presided over the OIV for the past three years and now will become First Vice-president.

A native of the French region of Champagne, Mr. Yves Bénard was elected President of the OIV during the 7th OIV General Assembly that was held in Zagreb, Croatia, in 2009. Prior to that, he developed an international career as a manager in the French wine industry.

During Mr. Bénard’s presidential term, the OIV membership grew with the incorporation of two new countries: Bosnia-Herzegovina and India. Also during this period the OIV strengthened ties with the People’s Republic of China, which has become the fifth largest wine consumer in the world.

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Ms. Quini after being elected President of the OIV. Image credits: Bekir Özden

The General Assembly of the OIV also elected the Presidents of the different Commissions and Sub-commissions:

Commission I Viticulture / Viticultura / Weinbau

SOTES RUIZ Vicente (Espagne / Spain / España / Spagna / Spanien)

Commission II Œnologie / Enology / Enología / Enologia / Önologie

COTEA Valeriu (Roumanie / Romania / Rumanía / Rumänien)

Commission III Droit et Economie / Law and Economy / Derecho y Economía / Diritto ed Economia / Recht und Wirtschaft

BARKER John (Nouvelle-Zélande / New Zealand / Nueva Zelanda / Nuova Zelanda / Neuseeland)

Commission IV Sécurité et Santé / Safety and Health / Seguridad y Salud / Sicurezza e Salute / Sicherheit und Gesundheit

STOCKLEY Creina (Australie / Australia / Australien)

Sous-commission des Méthodes d’Analyses / Methods of Analysis / Métodos de Análisis / Metodi d’Analisi / Analysemethoden

BARROS Paulo (Portugal / Portogallo)

Sous-commission Produits non fermentés, raisins de table et raisins secs / Table grapes, raisins and unfermented vine products / Uvas de mesa, pasas y productos no fermentados de la vid / Uva da tavola, uva secca e prodotti non fermentati della vite / Tafeltrauben, Rosinen und andere nicht fermentierte Erzeugnisse auf Traubenbasis

ALTINDISLI Ahmet (Turquie / Turkey / Turquía / Turchia / Türkei)