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Legislative Council - Fifty-Second Parliament, First Session (52-1)
2011-12-01 Daily Xml
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RIVERLAND WINE INDUSTRY

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO (14:40): I seek leave to make a brief explanation before asking the Minister for Regional Development a question about recent assistance to an industry in the Riverland.

Leave granted.

The Hon. CARMEL ZOLLO: For many, wine is one of the great pleasures in life, and South Australia is the Australian leader in wine production, and it is blessed with a number of important wine regions, including the Riverland. I ask the minister: will she tell the house about recent support for this industry in the Riverland.

The Hon. G.E. GAGO (Minister for Agriculture, Food and Fisheries, Minister for Forests, Minister for Regional Development, Minister for Tourism, Minister for the Status of Women) (14:41): I thank the honourable member for her most important question. Indeed, as I have said in this place before, the Riverland is one of our jewels. Members of this place have heard me on a number of occasions wax lyrical about what a wonderful place the Riverland is, in spite of the challenges it has before it.

I am very pleased to be able to tell the chamber that the Riverland Sustainable Futures Fund has supported a project to increase the production capacity of one of South Australia's oldest wineries. I have recently approved an application from Angove's Winery for up to $286,942 towards the installation of four new 100-tonne sweep-arm fermenters at its Bookmark Avenue winery in Renmark.

This project, which is expected to require an investment of over $500,000, is planned to increase the winery's red fermenter capacity, from 1,300 to 1,700 tonnes per week, and to bring the seasonal processing capability of this significant winemaker from approximately 12,000 tonnes to just under 16,000 tonnes.

Angove Family Winemakers (AFW) was founded in 1910 and is Australia's 16th largest winery and the country's 12th largest wine exporter by branded wine sales. AFW exports approximately 86 per cent of its production outside the state, with 36 per cent of this being domestic sales and 50 per cent being international sales, obviously making it a very important exporter for the state.

The company produces well-known global brands, such as Vineyard Select, Long Row, Nine Vines, Organics, Brightlands, Red Belly Black, Bear Crossing and also Butterfly Ridge, for export to around 30 different countries around the world. This winery is also an important employer in the region. It employs over 170 people, and around 90 people locally in the Riverland, to produce more than 1.5 million cases of wine annually.

To accommodate an ongoing export wine contract with Sainsbury's in the UK, and to meet increasing US demands for its range of wines with grapes purchased from the region and processed through the Renmark facility, AFW needs to increase its red fermenter capacity. Importantly, I am advised that the additional crush capacity will generate significant grower payments for the region, with approximately $670,000 of increased payments for 2012 and over $1 million for 2013 and beyond. So, it is good news for local grape growers.

Angove's is a long-term Riverland winery and, as I am advised, it plans to help lead recovery of the region's wine industry by increasing its operational capacity and diversifying its product offerings beyond industry forecasts. Building its capacity and sourcing more grapes from local growers to help reinvigorate the wine industry in this iconic wine region is obviously a very positive and good thing. This government is very pleased to be able to get behind this sort of endeavour by assisting with the grant.

I am advised that the winery also plans to seek the necessary tanks for this expansion from a local manufacturer, and the tanks are to be constructed by JMA Engineering at their Berri fabrication facility and then transported and erected at the winery. The project is set to commence later this year and aims to be completed by the first quarter of 2012.

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