Durban – The local wine industry continues boosting its economic contribution and employment and remains among the country’s leading agricultural exporters, according to the latest South African Wine Industry Information and Systems (Sawis) report.
In 2013 the industry contributed R36.1 billion to gross domestic product via tourism, agriculture, manufacturing and trade and hospitality, and it employs nearly 300 000 people. Compiled by Conningarth Economists, the report covers the period 2008 to 2013.
When the pleasure of wine translates into real economics, we can only wave enthusiastically as representatives from Stellenbosch go to Germany to showcase the wealth of wine tourism and gemütlichkeit or the general feeling of cosiness, contentment, comfort and relaxation the City of Oaks promises tourists during its forthcoming winter season.
Being held next week, ITB Berlin is the world’s largest tourism convention and will serve as the international platform for the town’s Stellenbosch Experience destination campaign.
That initiative is a global marketing drive by the Stellenbosch Wine Routes and Stellenbosch 360 to promote the region as a benchmark for excellence in wine tourism.
It encourages local and international travellers to engage in experiential wine, food and lifestyle encounters to expand their stay beyond day visits for wine tasting.
Stellenbosch Wine Routes chief executive Annareth Bolton says nearly a quarter of their visitors are German, but with the world becoming increasingly aware of the winelands via social media networks, there is a strong belief South Africa’s wine tourism can grow exponentially.
ITB Berlin will launch the town’s winter programme, encouraging tourists to “immerse themselves in ultimate bucket-list encounters” and not exclusively aimed at the well-heeled international traveller.
Essentially, South Africa is the world’s eighth-largest wine producer by volume, yet, says Sawis executive manager Yvette van der Merwe, receives little government support for production and marketing initiatives compared with the Europe or Australia.
The report showed 58% of the job opportunities in the industry were located in the Western Cape and improved worker training saw unskilled labour drop two percentage points to 56%.
Mechanisation had not affected the number of job positions available in the industry.
Wine tourism generated R6bn in 2013 with 43% of international visitors to the Western Cape visiting the winelands.
However, the report also highlighted the mounting pressure on the industry’s profitability with production costs outpacing the growth in income generated from grape production and Van der Merwe says the new European Union Trade Agreement had produced closer collaboration between the industry and the government.
It was hoped there would be further free trade agreements in key export markets across Asia where our competitors Chile, Australia and New Zealand had “a significant head start”.
Here’s to hoping initiatives like ITB Berlin are only the start of those better days for Stellenbosch and the winelands.
The Mercury
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