IN BREVE
- Mack & Schühle Italia has inaugurated a dealcoholization plant in Puglia with a production capacity of 7.5 million bottles.
- The plant combines Italian membrane separation and vacuum distillation technologies to produce low-alcohol wines.
- Italian regulations for dealcoholized wines were defined in 2025, paving the way for investment in this category.
- The company aims to produce wines with less than 0.5% alcohol and capture demand in international markets such as the United Kingdom and United States.
- The global No-Lo wine market is growing strongly, estimated at $2.4 billion and projected to increase to $3.3 billion by 2028.
Mack & Schühle Italia has inaugurated one of the first dealcoholization plants in Italy, in Puglia, with a production capacity of 7.5 million bottles. The company, based in Santeramo in Colle (Bari), has installed at the Laterza facility, in the province of Taranto, machinery that allows it to “reduce alcohol content while preserving the wine’s organoleptic characteristics.”
The announcement comes after the completion of the Italian regulatory framework for dealcoholized and partially dealcoholized wines, finalized at the end of December 2025. In this context, Mack & Schühle Italia aims to position itself among the pioneering producers of wines with low or zero alcohol content in Italy. With a plant that promises “production versatility and the ability to meet international market demands.”
DEALCOHOLIZATION PLANT IN LATERZA: THE TECHNOLOGY
The new plant installed by Mack & Schühle Italia at the Laterza production site is entirely Italian technology. According to the company’s announcement, the process combines membrane separation and vacuum distillation, with reintegration of extracted water. “The goal – explains the Italian “subsidiary” of the international group founded in 1939 in Germany – is to obtain balanced wines while maintaining aromas and fragrances.”
A central aspect of the project is the ability to process different types: still, semi-sparkling and sparkling wines. The plant would allow production of dealcoholized wines with alcohol content below 0.5% and partially dealcoholized wines with alcohol between 0.5% and traditional levels. All in compliance with fiscal and health regulations required by Italian and European legislation.
DEALCOHOLIZED WINE REGULATIONS: ITALIAN FRAMEWORK COMPLETED AT END OF 2025
Until 2025, Italy did not have a complete regulatory framework for the production of wines with low or zero alcohol content. The regulatory framework was defined with Ministerial Decree no. 672816/2024, updated by DM no. 213946 of May 14, 2025, and completed on December 29, 2025 with the interministerial decree Mef–Masaf which established fiscal, health and procedural requirements for the production of dealcoholized wines.
The completion of the regulatory framework is indicated by Mack & Schühle Italia as “a decisive step that has allowed Italian companies to invest in a structured way in this category, opening a new phase for the sector.”
MACK & SCHÜHLE ITALIA AND NO-LO MARKET: PRODUCTION CAPACITY AND EXPORT OBJECTIVES
Mack & Schühle Italia has initiated the process to obtain the “DID” license (Dealcoholization Plant Facility) and estimates an annual production capacity of approximately 7.5 million bottles of 75 cl. The objective is to capture demand for No-Lo wines in markets already mature in this category, including the United Kingdom, United States and Germany. The Italian market, in recent months, has seen growing interest in low-alcohol products.
Framing the company’s strategic choice is a statement from Fedele Angelillo, sole director of Mack & Schühle Italia: “Dealcoholized wine has existed for some time, but few products in the world achieve acceptable quality and aromas. We want to make a difference by focusing on Italian technology and our winemaking foundations.”
MARKET DATA: GLOBAL GROWTH AND PERFORMANCE IN GERMANY, UK AND USA
The global No-Lo market is growing. The sector is estimated at around $2.4 billion, with forecasts of $3.3 billion by 2028. Indicated annual growth rates are 8% by value and 7% by volume.
In the first nine months of 2025, alcohol-free wines recorded significant increases in Germany (+46%), United Kingdom (+20%) and United States (+18%). Italian wines produced abroad are also increasing, with +6% in the United Kingdom and +17% in the United States, with respective shares of 24% and 6%.
