NEWS

Winemakers are taking positive steps to support the prosperity and sustainability of the sector

Australian Grape & Wine are pleased to announce that there have been over twenty new Signatories to the Code of Conduct for Australian Winegrape Purchases. For those who are yet to sign, you can do so online in less than a minute.

We would like to acknowledge those who have shown their support for fair and equitable trading and the sustainability of the sector by signing.  

A full list of Signatories is available on the Code website.

We estimate that with additional winemakers having signed up to the Code over the last 12 months, that the percentage of Australian grapes crushed by signatories is now over 60%.

An ACCC study into the winegrape market in 2019 highlighted the importance of winemakers becoming signatories to the Code. The Code is a valuable resource for the wine industry providing winemakers a framework to ensure that grape purchase agreements are fair and equitable. There is no fee required to join as a signatory.

Signing the code is more than just a commitment to forging successful relationships between buyers and sellers of grapes. It is also an important step to protect the sector from unnecessary regulation. The ACCC study not only highlighted some of the issues that must be addressed by winemakers in their dealings with growers, but also presented a call to action for more winemakers to sign the Code, particularly those processing over 10 000 tonnes. Failure to see an increase in the number of signatories will likely result in a mandatory Code being imposed upon winemakers.

The Code is an industry led document that was amended and improved in 2020 to reflect feedback highlighted though industry engagement by both the ACCC and Australian Grape & Wine. Examples of improvements are the removal of indicative pricing and increased rigour as to how price affecting quality assessments must be made.

Signing up to the Code is a quick and easy process. Once the online application has been completed, new signatories have three months to check grape supply agreements for consistency with the Code and make an offer to growers to amend their agreement, if necessary, so that they are consistent with the Code. Transitional provisions mean that any required changes can be done at any time prior to December 2021. We have received numerous questions from potential signatories and welcome more enquiries. Please direct any queries to us by email anna@agw.org.au 

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