B.C.’s wine industry suffers from “a lack of organization, coordination and policy foresight,” according to a new report drafted by Simon Fraser University (SFU) researcher Anil Hira and graduate student Alexis Bwenge.
The finding in the report, The wine industry in B.C.: A closed wine but ready for harvest, is bang-on, according to Tinhorn Creek Vineyards Ltd. owner Sandra Oldfield.
She fears that were there another 9-11 terrorist-style attack or any other unexpected phenomenon that suddenly curtailed tourism to B.C. wine country, winery owners would not have the communication network necessary to quickly develop strategies to collectively boost revenue.
“More wineries need to recognize that we’re all in this together,” Oldfield told Business in Vancouver on Thursday.
“We’re all linked for quality and sales. If you’re too insular, you’re not thinking, ‘What is the competition doing in Argentina?’”
She partly blames historical B.C. government policies.
Decades ago, Victoria gave out three different types of winery licenses:
Today those categories have been scrunched into two: commercial and non-commercial.
Still, many winery owners’ social network tends to be disproportionately weighted to include either neighbours or peers in terms of size.
“When was the last time I spoke to someone on the Naramata Bench? A long time ago,” said Oldfield, who believes that she networks more than many of the principles of B.C.’s nearly 200 wineries.
“In California, you have people at [E&J] Gallo [Winery] sit down with people at 5,000-case A. Rafanelli to discuss how they can market Dry Creek Valley better,” Oldfield said.