This Strategy provides a framework for the modernization, development, and international promotion of the country’s viticulture and wine sector over a ten-year horizon. It recognizes grape cultivation and wine production as historically significant and economically strategic activities, central to rural development, value-added agricultural production, and national branding, and it presents a detailed assessment of the sector’s current state, examining vineyard infrastructure, winery capacities, production volumes, market structures, institutional frameworks, and legislative alignment with European Union standards.
A number of structural and operational challenges are identified, including the predominance of aging vineyards, limited adoption of modern cultivation and production techniques, underutilized winery and storage capacities, fragmented production systems, and a historical dependence on bulk wine exports with limited added value. Simultaneously, the Strategy highlights significant opportunities for the sector, emphasizing the potential for expanding the production of high-quality bottled wines, promoting autochthonous grape varieties, enhancing competitiveness in international markets, and strengthening the domestic and global recognition of Macedonian wine.
Furthermore, the Strategy highlights the need for socioeconomic integration, promoting healthier, partner-based relationships between individual grape growers and commercial wineries to ensure fair pricing and consistent supply quality. The development of rural and wine tourism is identified as a critical opportunity to engage small family wineries, fostering local economic revitalization and raising the national profile of North Macedonia as a wine-producing destination.
The Strategy establishes environmental sustainability as a foundational pillar for the sector’s evolution. Central to this approach is the advancement of organic production methods, facilitated by dedicated support measures for certification and the establishment of new organic vineyards. The Strategy further emphasizes the conservation of biodiversity within vine-growing regions, recognizing that naturally resilient ecosystems are essential for maintaining the integrity of local "terroirs".