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Eastern grape glut raises concerns about B.C.
Long-term contractual relationships have allowed B.C. growers and vintners to sail through current industry woes largely unscathed. But, it’s not stopping the rumor mill from working over-time, explained a member of the B.C. Wine Institute.
“Globally, there is a grape glut because of over-production in France, Australia and California,” said Lisa Cameron, general manager of the B.C. Wine Institute. “And it has been inferred that there was a problem in B.C. when there is none.”
In Canada, the biggest problem has been in Ontario where growers produced more grapes than the wineries could accommodate, and at this point that province is now laden with 8,000 tons of product with no buyers.
While it may sound like an alarming volume, Cameron explained over-production is not unheard of within the industry. The good news is that B.C. growers and wineries work together more effectively.
“Growers here are in long term contracts with wineries so they ensure they have a buyer for their product before they grow it,” she explained.
There’s also a higher ratio of vineyards that grow their own supply of grapes in B.C. and that amounts to less waste as well. About 70 per cent of planted acreage in B.C. is owned by wineries, whereas Ontario is home to a higher proportion of independent growers who have less understanding of what the demand of the winemaker may be.
While there isn’t a glut in B.C., the impact of what’s happening in other regions is being felt locally.
“It makes the competition fierce,” Cameron said, noting that supply and demand issues are lowering the price of the finished product of wine. “We can’t compete on price or volume like they can in California or France — we have to compete based on quality.”
kathy@kelowna.com
250-575-0761
Tags: grape glut, wineries
