The South African wine industry is concerned about the “dire consequences” that yet another alcohol ban or restrictions on the sale of wine will hold for wine-related businesses and the livelihoods of those working in the South African wine industry value-chain. This includes wine tourism.
“Wine industry body, Vinpro, and the rest of the wine industry, share President Ramaphosa’s concern over the sudden and severe spike in positive COVID-19 cases and related deaths, and understand the need for drastic measures to address it,” said Vinpro MD, Rico Basson.
However, he added that, without financial support by government, it was not a viable option to shut down an entire industry on which more than 269 000 people were dependent for their livelihoods while more targeted lockdown measures could be utilised,
“A blanket policy approach to the restriction of wine sales is unnecessary, unjustified and counterproductive. We know and have clear evidence that the restriction of legal trade in wine and other liquor products fuels the growth of the illicit market.
“Illicit trade currently represents 22% of the total local liquor consumption and has grown significantly since 2020. Because this illicit market is outside the regulatory reach of government and operates uncontrolled, it may have a devastating effect on communities from a health and socio-economic perspective,” said Basson.
He reiterated that a national ban on wine sales would have dire consequences for the industry, pointing out that decisions should be made at a provincial level, based on scientific evidence and according to the infection rate and hospital admissions across those provinces.
“The wine industry proactively implemented preventative measures to protect employees and visitors to farms, as well as the industry’s 533 wineries. We therefore urge government to keep our industry open and apply interventions in certain hotspots,” said Basson.
“It is also time for government to step up and properly police non-compliance with COVID-19 regulations, as it certainly does not help to impose harsh restrictions every time the health-care system is experiencing a crisis, while regulations are not enforced. Government also needs to accelerate the vaccination roll-out, as these two measures are the first line of defence in a pandemic such as this.”
Legal battle set for August
Meanwhile, Vinpro’s legal challenge against South Africa’s national government – in which it is contesting specific aspects of decision-making in respect of liquor bans – is still to be heard in the Western Cape High Court in August.
“This proudly South African industry, which also strongly relies on tourism and hospitality, found itself in a dire position after an alcohol ban of 19 weeks since March 2020,” said Basson, highlighting that this had resulted in a loss of more than R8bn (€432m) in direct sales and the possible closure of cellars and producers.
The Vinpro court case will challenge, amongst others, that the wrong level of government has been dealing with decision-making regarding the retail sale of liquor during the national state of disaster (national versus provincial).
Vinpro represents close to 2 600 South African wine grape producers, cellars and other wine-related businesses, who support a significant workforce, all of whom owe their livelihood to and are dependent upon the wine industry.
Many of Vinpro’s members also sell and distribute their wines to licensed restaurants and hotels and, furthermore, operate licensed restaurants on their own farms where wine tastings are offered to consumers.