After nearly three years of wrangling, controversy, deliberation, and second thoughts, Ireland has decided to abandon its hard line on labeling. The announcement was made on his Facebook page by italian Minister of Agriculture, Food Sovereignty, and Forestry (MASAF), Francesco Lollobrigida .

"Today my colleague Martin Heydon [Irish Agriculture Minister, ed.] confirmed to me the Irish government's decision to proceed in agreement with Italy and other European partners to review national legislation on the labeling of alcoholic beverages (health warnings), abandoning unilateral positions that Italy had contested," reports the MASAF minister.

Lollobrigida hailed the Irish government's decision as "another great victory for the protection of our winemaking and production system." She concluded with an invitation: "We look forward to seeing you in Verona for Vinitaly 2026, dear Martin!"

Senator Giorgio Salvitti , member of the Finance Committee and advisor to MASAF, echoed this sentiment: “The announcement that Irish Agriculture Minister Heydon has decided to review the rules on wine labels is an extraordinary first step towards avoiding criminalizing a beverage that is part of our ancient history,” said Salvitti . “This opening is the result of the enormous work done in Europe by Minister Lollobrigida , who did not give in to the crazy idea of using alarmist labels on one of Italy's leading export products, which would have had disastrous consequences for the entire sector.”