A wine industry expert is calling on Australians to buy local red wine in support of grape growers facing tough years ahead, even if the Chinese imposed tariffs lift.
The Chinese export market was worth $1.2 billion but now winemakers were exporting less than $10 million worth of wine a year, due to import duties of 218 per cent being put on Australian wine in August 2020.
“That’s an enormous drop for any industry to go through and quite an economic shock,” Australian Grape and Wine Chief Executive Lee McLean said.
“Our next two biggest export markets at that period of time (before tariffs were imposed) were the US and the United Kingdom and they were both sitting at just under $500 million each.”
China’s Ministry of Commerce is undertaking a five-month review process of the import duties, which is due to be finalised on March 31.
Last week the ABC reported Trade Minister Don Farrell would ask his Chinese counterpart to remove trade blocks on Australian lobster and wine when he meets with him on February 26.
The talks will be made more difficult as Australia seeks to reduce writer Yang Hengjun’s suspended death sentence after he was held in detention on espionage charges.
The wine glut
Even if the tariffs lift, McLean doesn’t expect Chinese exports to return to the same $1 billion level.
He said winemakers were facing an incredibly difficult period as predominantly red grapes had been picked but they hadn’t been made into wine due to the reduced demand, which is known as the wine glut.
“While a lot of wines are made to age, many aren’t,” he said.
“We do have a bit of an issue as an industry about what we’re going to do with that excess wine because there’s always another vintage around the corner.”
(9news)
