Monday saw the industry confirming that in order to support the wine industry amidst global recession, New Zealand's grape harvest in 2009 has been held at the same level as the year before.

It should be noted that the grapes' volume was 285,000 tonnes, up from earlier forecasts, but in line with 2008's final crop.

An increase in the area of plantings was noticed by 7%; however the production had been kept stable in order to maintain quality and earnings in weaker markets.

New Zealand Winegrowers chief executive Philip Gregan said, "There has been downward pressure on prices in the short-term given the global recession and market conditions."

New Zealand is best known for the white Sauvignon Blanc variety and its current year's harvest was up 5 percent on the previous year.

It should be noted though that the world also knows New Zealand for producing the red Pinot Noir variety. It has also made an effort to place its wines at the top end of the market to gain the best prices.

Gregan said, "The prospect of some outstanding wines from the 2009 vintage will help underpin our price premium."

More than 500 winemakers are located in the country, many of which are boutique operations, but produce less than 0.5 percent of global wine.

(via TopNews New Zealand. Contributed by Kohia Dennison)