UPM Raflatac hosts wine label seminar in Yantai, China

In 2016, total Chinese wine consumption was 1.73 billion liters, ranking it fifth globally, behind the US, France, Italy and Germany. ‘Shandong is one of the most important wine regions in China, and its production accounts for 38 percent of the country's total wine volume,’ explained Tony Lei, UPM Raflatac business manager, North Asia. ‘But in terms of per capita consumption, the annual rate is only 1.23 liters in China (less than two bottles per person), which is a big gap compared to France, where the rate reaches 40.13 liters.’

Creating a good shelf effect, pressure-sensitive labels can boost sales, he said. ‘Shelf effect not only refers to the glamorous appearance, but also needs a combination of fine processing, professional labels and intimate design, none of which can be omitted.’

His perspective was supported by Leo Jin, business and quality development manager for UPM Raflatac Oceania, who noted a study by the Australian government and University of South Australia that showed the impact of label and package on wine’s prices can reach 26-42 percent. Further, this impacts not only the price, but also the expected taste by drinkers. In Australia, the percentage of pressure-sensitive labels in wine is very high, said UPM Raflatac, which claims to have more than 80 percent market share in the Australian wine market.

More than 30 people, including more than 10 local wineries, wine label printers and UPM Raflatac executives, attended the June 2 meeting. Sean Heng, vice president of UPM Raflatac Asia-Pacific, and Jeff Wang, sales director of UPM Raflatac Greater China, attended the meeting.

Other presentations at the seminar included Sharon Xiao, sustainable development manager of UPM Asia Pacific, who explained that a focus on sustainable development can bring benefits to wineries, referencing the successful life cycle assessment between UPM Raflatac and Italian wine maker Cielo Terra. Ren Liqiang, general manager of Wanlipengcheng, described the function orientation and the future trends in wine labels from the design perspective. And Yu Zhongbo, section chief of food and drug administration in Yantai, was invited to give detailed introductions of the standards of wine labels and the food safety production license.