Wine continued to post declines in 2021, although at a slower rate than the previous year. Since wine is mainly consumed by inbound tourists and a limited number of Moroccan consumers, volume sales were deeply impacted by the continued closure of borders and the drop in tourist arrivals, along with the closure of restaurants.
Still red wine is extremely popular among wine consumers and it is the most consumed among still grape varieties. Although sales were impacted by the drop in tourist arrivals and parallel trade, still red wine remains the most popular and better performing option in the category, despite total volume sales declining by 3%.
Les Celliers de Meknes strengthened its overall leadership of wine in 2021 with a wide range of products, good quality, well-established brands and affordable prices, along with a strong distribution network that ensures availability across the country. The player owns more than 8,300 hectares of vineyards and focuses its activities on wine.
While consumption tax on beer increased by 20% in 2021, wine also recorded a rise in consumption tax by 12% to reach MAD900 per hectolitre (up from MAD800 per hectolitre). In addition, wine registered a total volume CAGR of -3% but a total current value CAGR of 5% over the review period.
Several non-alcoholic wine brands were launched towards the end of the review period, and mainly distributed by Carrefour supermarkets and hypermarkets that are frequented by more affluent consumers in Morocco. The brands included non-alcoholic Le Petit Béret variants such as Le Petit Béret Pétillant Rosé, Le Petit Béret Pétillant Blanc de Blancs, organic Le Petit Béret Rosé, which is also low in sugar, Le Petit Béret Sauvignon and Le Petit Béret Cabernet Sauvignon.
Modern grocery retailers, including supermarket and hypermarkets, continued to dominate off-trade sales of wine in 2021, due to carrying a wide range of products, and thus offering consumers notable choice at low prices. In addition, these outlets attempt to expand their consumer reach and to stimulate sales by running offers and promotions.
Sales of fortified wine and vermouth continued to be hampered by the lack of demand and limited popularity among local consumers, since the culture of such drinks does not exist in Morocco. Drinking as an aperitif or as a dessert wine option is only adopted by foreign residents or tourists visiting the country, which explains the further double-digit total volume sales decline registered in 2021.
Customs duties levied on imported wine are expected to be completely dismantled during 2022. As witnessed at the end of the review period, the number of imported products and new entrants is expected to increase further during the forecast period, which will lead to greater fragmentation of wine.
Still red wine will continue to drive overall sales of the category in Morocco as the persisting pandemic and economic difficulties due to COVID-19 along with high unemployment and decreasing disposable incomes will likely lead to further economising over the early part of the forecast period. Moreover, off-trade sales are expected to outpace the on-trade channel due to the ongoing economic recession and due to the fact that off-trade targets the mass consumer base mostly comprised of mid- and lower-income consumers who are extremely price conscious.
The ongoing Moroccan economic downturn and declining disposable incomes will discourage price-sensitive consumers from purchasing expensive wine formats such as sparkling wine and fortified wine and vermouth. The persisting pandemic and its severe impact on consumer sentiment, added to the drop in inbound tourists and a ban of public celebrations, will ultimately have dire effects on demand for sparkling wine in particular, with the latter expected to record a total volume CAGR of -7% over the forecast period.
Wine players will face several challenges over the forecast period, related mainly to the global spike in raw material prices, mainly grapes, raisins and sugar, in addition to packaging materials and the rising consumption tax. On the other hand, weak disposable incomes will not only have a severe impact on volume sales, but also encourage the mass segment of price-sensitive consumers to switch to unbranded wine in the parallel market.
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Wine
This is the aggregation of still and sparkling light grape wines, fortified wine and vermouth and non-grape wine. In terms of alcohol content, light wine usually falls into the 8-14% ABV bracket while fortified wine ranges from 14-23% ABV. Low and non-alcoholic wine is also included in the data (attributed to each sector as appropriate).
See All of Our DefinitionsThis report originates from Passport, our Wine research and analysis database.
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