SA wine records 9% growth to September

WINES OF South Africa (Wosa) has succeeded in its primary role of building a positive image for South African wines and creating a unique and competitive point of difference on global markets. That’s the finding of a strategic review undertaken by respected wine economist James Herrick on behalf of Wosa to give greater clarity to the parameters of its role as a generic marketing body. Stressing that Wosa’s role is not to sell wine but maintain a positive reputation for the country as a wine producer, Herrick praises the support of the country’s major producers for coming to the aid of the organisation, despite tough times for some of them. The study comes on the back of rising exports, South Africa once again reporting a growth in sales volumes after a temporary setback last year, when sales dipped 5%. For the 12 months to September 2007, total wine export volumes were up 9%, with the industry diversifying into new markets and achieving significant success in Sweden, Germany, Denmark and Canada. “Premium wines are doing very well in the US and several big companies are now tackling the American mass market. Sales to the UK are on track with record export levels in October when volumes reached 36 million litres, 5 million litres more than the previous record set in May 2007,” says Wosa CE Su Birch.