(TDB) - The Wine Institute of California is to close its UK office next month following severe cuts in funding from the US Dept of Agriculture, it was announced today.

The office, which is based in London, has been headed up by John McLaren for the past 21 years, and is funded under the Market Access Programme from the Department of Agriculture in Washington DC.

Aside from the support provided by the London office to Californian wine importers and retailers in the UK, McLaren – along with Venla Freeman, the Institute’s UK trade promotions manager – organises the annual Go West tasting for Californian wine, which is held in March at London’s QEII centre.

The London office closure will result in the termination of both McLaren’s and Freeman’s positions at the Wine Institute.

Speaking to the drinks business this morning after the news broke, McLaren expressed his “shock” at the decision, and the timing of the announcement.

“If sales of California wine in the UK were plummeting then I might understand, but over £10, there is considerable growth for California, and there is still a lot of momentum to be achieved,” he said.

Continuing, he said that the decision to close the UK office was “unfortunate for me and Venla, and it is unfortunate for the UK trade, who won’t get the service we provide, and the timing is unfortunate too, because premium California is doing so well, and there is still a lot of momentum for the UK.”

Although the UK is California’s largest export market by volume, following “severe cuts” in funding from the USDA, McLaren told db that the Wine Institute has made the decision “to prioritise growing markets and markets where there are opportunities, rather than established markets where it is assumed that they have momentum of their own.”

However, he added, “But I’m not sure how it is believed that this momentum will continue without our office, because we are providing a lot of support for small upmarket importers of Californian wine, and there is still a lot that needs to be achieved.”

When asked by db for the reason for funding cuts by the USDA, he commented, “I’m not sure why the budget has been cut in [Washington] DC, and in terms of overall DC activities it is peanuts, but I do know that the overall programme, which is to support agricultural products, has been criticised in the Senate – people have asked ‘why should huge meat and soya bean companies etc be benefitting from US tax dollars?’ But at the same time it is helping the smaller players, and I wish they would consider that.”

Continuing he said, “And this is a major cut, over the last three years we’ve had to work on a smaller budget, but it has still been very worthwhile, and I would have liked to have a choice to do it [promote Californian wines in the UK] myself on a smaller basis… but that wasn’t offered to me.”