New Zealand wine refused due to high copper levels

A German wine importer has refused delivery of a shipment of wine from New Zealand, from the Te Karianga winery. The wine contained 3.6 ppm (parts per million) of copper whereas the limit within the EU is 1 ppm. 4000 cases were returned to the producer. The returned wine will, it is said, instead be sold in New Zealand. Wine is not routinely checked for copper in New Zealand. According to FoodWeek.com the CEO of Te Kairanga, Ian Frame says to NZ Herald that he is not worried, since the wine were not going to be sold under the Te Karianga name. The Chief Executive of New Zealand Wines (a producer organisation), Philip Gregan, is not worried either: since Germany is a "stickler for technical points […] They are just very pedantic about rules and regulations […] If there's an issue that comes out of a customer in Germany, it never surprises me." FoodWeek.com (Copper is sometimes added to wine to remove unwanted smells caused by the use of sulphur in wine production.) NZHerald.co.nz

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