Cape Town - The global wine industry is worth $230bn a year and the potential yields for the South African industry have never been as great, nor the pitfalls as plenty, according to Linda Buckley, director of executive education at UCT’s Graduate School of Business (GSB).
Those in the wine industry will, therefore, need special management skills to survive tough economic times.
Reseach shows investors in the wine industry should be aware of two developing trends that could have a drastic impact on the future of wine.
The first is the emergence of China and India as new important economies and their developing tastes for wine, according to the 2012 Global AgriVestment report.
In China the consumption of wine rose 65% between 2005 and 2008 and quadrupled between 1990 and 2013.
These opportunities will be tempered by the potential impact of global climate change, which will affect both the quality and viability of existing vineyards.
The first conference on wine and global warming took place in Spain in March 2006 and vintners from all over the world voiced their concerns.
South African wine producers are also likely to feel the heat of global warming and are additionally at risk from rising energy prices and over regulation.
The South African Wine Industry Insights Survey of 2012 found that the heavily regulated environment in which wine businesses operate in South Africa continues to be a challenge for the industry.
The upside of regulation, though, is that SA's wine industry is regarded as one of the leaders in promoting ethical trade in the industry.
“Focusing on the development of both new and existing markets is key to growing the local wine business in the foreseeable future,” said Buckley.
- Fin24
Those in the wine industry will, therefore, need special management skills to survive tough economic times.
Reseach shows investors in the wine industry should be aware of two developing trends that could have a drastic impact on the future of wine.
The first is the emergence of China and India as new important economies and their developing tastes for wine, according to the 2012 Global AgriVestment report.
In China the consumption of wine rose 65% between 2005 and 2008 and quadrupled between 1990 and 2013.
These opportunities will be tempered by the potential impact of global climate change, which will affect both the quality and viability of existing vineyards.
The first conference on wine and global warming took place in Spain in March 2006 and vintners from all over the world voiced their concerns.
South African wine producers are also likely to feel the heat of global warming and are additionally at risk from rising energy prices and over regulation.
The South African Wine Industry Insights Survey of 2012 found that the heavily regulated environment in which wine businesses operate in South Africa continues to be a challenge for the industry.
The upside of regulation, though, is that SA's wine industry is regarded as one of the leaders in promoting ethical trade in the industry.
“Focusing on the development of both new and existing markets is key to growing the local wine business in the foreseeable future,” said Buckley.
- Fin24