Port: Organization of the industry

By the mid 2010s, thanks to considerable new plantings in the Douro Superior, mostly eu-subsidized, the total number of grape growers in the Douro had grown to 34,000. They farmed a total of 45,000 ha/111,000 acres of vines in the Douro, mostly in the Baixo Corgo, nearly a third of which is under vine. In common with most of the north of Portugal, the region is fragmented into tiny holdings of which 142,000 were registered with the Casa do Douro, the official body set up in 1932 to represent the growers. Over 80% of these holdings are less than 0.5 ha/1.2 acres in size and a mere 0.01% have an area greater than 30 ha/74 acres. The development of the Douro Superior has caused a serious imbalance and brought a dramatic reduction in the price of grapes for Douro wine. Many growers, especially in the steeper Baixo Corgo region, have been producing grapes at below cost. Port grapes are better protected by the benefício, which some argue creates a false market.