Share

Wine industry seeks new cultivars to cope with drought

Cape Town – Climate impacts like increasing heat and water constraints are prompting VinPro, a service organisation for wine producers and cellar members, to look for cultivars and roots which are more heat resistant and use less water.

According to Francois Viljoen, manager of consultation service at VinPro, these kinds of cultivars do exist in South Africa and the organisation is looking into what they could offer the wine industry.

“The SA viticulture industry is also working closely with local and international researchers to get the best advice on cutting edge technology that can be used to address challenges,” Viljoen said at the Nedbank VinPro information day on Thursday.

On the other hand, he pointed out that since 2003 the planting of wine grapes has declined. Since 2007 uprootings have exceeded plantings in the industry. The average plantings have declined by about 350 hectares per year.

Despite this trend, the wine grape industry has managed to produce record crops over the last number of years.

Viljoen said the wine grape industry started its current season (in spring 2015) with dams already only half full.

“El Nino brought nice holiday weather, but it was not good for us,” said Viljoen.

Load shedding for grapes

“We have now already had so many days with temperatures above 35 degrees – even since October 2015. The problem is that at temperatures above 35 degrees, the vine goes into shutdown mode in order to protect itself from collapse – just like Eskom load shedding.”

And if the impact of the heat is not enough, the issue of water has been added. At this stage Viljoen estimates that crop bunches are lighter and berries are smaller.

While a good harvest is expected in the Northern Cape, the Swartland region has been impacted the most by the drought. In the Paarl and Stellenbosch areas a considerable decline in crop harvest is expected due to the drought and the heat. In these two regions there have also been a considerable drop in new planting of wine grapes.

“There are still good things in the industry, though,” emphasised Viljoen. “There are vineyards which are looking good and had enough water. This brings the opportunity to make good wines and wines with a lower alcohol content – something marketers tell us the market wants.”

We live in a world where facts and fiction get blurred
Who we choose to trust can have a profound impact on our lives. Join thousands of devoted South Africans who look to News24 to bring them news they can trust every day. As we celebrate 25 years, become a News24 subscriber as we strive to keep you informed, inspired and empowered.
Join News24 today
heading
description
username
Show Comments ()
Rand - Dollar
18.94
-0.0%
Rand - Pound
23.91
-0.0%
Rand - Euro
20.41
+0.1%
Rand - Aus dollar
12.33
+0.1%
Rand - Yen
0.13
-0.0%
Platinum
908.05
+1.2%
Palladium
1,014.94
0.0%
Gold
2,232.75
-0.0%
Silver
24.95
-0.1%
Brent Crude
87.00
+1.8%
Top 40
68,346
0.0%
All Share
74,536
0.0%
Resource 10
57,251
0.0%
Industrial 25
103,936
0.0%
Financial 15
16,502
0.0%
All JSE data delayed by at least 15 minutes Iress logo
Company Snapshot
Editorial feedback and complaints

Contact the public editor with feedback for our journalists, complaints, queries or suggestions about articles on News24.

LEARN MORE
Government tenders

Find public sector tender opportunities in South Africa here.

Government tenders
This portal provides access to information on all tenders made by all public sector organisations in all spheres of government.
Browse tenders