South Australia’s reputation as a leader in the wine industry is set for a boost thanks to new funding for a research facility being backed by a $4.46 million grant from the Turnbull Government.
Minister for Education and Training Simon Birmingham who announced the funding today at the University of Adelaide’s ARC Industrial Transformation Training Centre for Innovative Wine Production said it was critical the Australian wine industry continued to advance and evolve both in Australia and overseas.
“Spanning the entire product chain—from grape-growing to the consumer—this training centre will continue to be critical to improving the competitiveness and viability of Australian wine production in the long-term,” Minister Birmingham said.
“The epicentre of Australia’s booming $5.5 billion wine industry is right here in South Australia and this new research centre will be vital for advances in the industry.
“World first research and technological breakthroughs in the vineyard, winemaking processes, marketing practices and even bottle closures have helped make Australia a world leader, but it is essential that we invest and train to stay ahead of our many global competitors.
“We need to ensure our grape growers and winemakers are supported and have the pathways to expand and remain internationally competitive.
“That means having access to the best technology and knowledge and skilling-up our next generation of wine scientists and researchers to support the needs of industry.
“Researchers will tackle challenges facing the Australian wine industry such as disease prevention, reducing environmental impacts and will also focus on advancing innovations to reduce production costs and improve quality.
“With the bulk of wine enterprises in Australia, including those here in South Australia being family or small businesses they must be given the opportunities to grow and compete on the world-stage because that is what boosts our economy and creates more jobs.
The ARC Industrial Transformation Training Centres scheme fosters close partnerships between university-based researchers and other research end-users to provide innovative research and training opportunities that are industry focused.
The University of Adelaide will work together with partner university Charles Sturt University; and with 12 industry partner organisations: Department of Primary Industries, NSW Government; Commonwealth Scientific and Industrial Research Organisation; Pernod Ricard Winemakers Pty Ltd; Volatile Acidity Filtration (SA) Pty Ltd; Coonawarra Grape and Wine Inc; Australian Genome Research Facility Ltd; Australian Wine Research Institute; Chalmers Wines Australia Pty Ltd; Ernest & Julio Gallo Winery, California; Australian Grape and Wine Authority; Availer Pty Ltd; and Lallemand Australia Pty Ltd.
For more information about the ARC Industrial Transformation Training Centre for Innovative Wine Production visit: https://www.adelaide.edu.au/tc-iwp/.