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Wine & Grapes
Grapecheque
Grapecheque Contacts
Wine Industry Leadership Program
Smoke Taint Research
Grape phylloxera
Grapecheque assists grape growers to make informed decisions about their businesses. The aim of the program is to develop a sustainable viticulture industry in Victoria. The program, which began in 1997, is primarily funded through the Department of Primary Industries (DPI) and is supported by regional, state and national wine industry organisations.
Regionally based grower Grapecheque groups operate throughout Victoria and each group is supported by one of four DPI facilitators. Events are planned by the facilitator in consultation with the growers from each group. The events are based on the needs of the group and include seminars, vineyard walks, study tours and on going projects. Some events use experts to deliver information on various subjects, but there is also a strong emphasis on group members learning from other growers.
Traditionally, Grapecheque events focussed on viticultural management practices such as irrigation, pruning and spray application. This reflected the needs of an industry that was rapidly expanding with many new entrants requiring viticultural knowledge and skills development.
Recently, the focus of Grapecheque has broadened in response to the challenges now confronting the wine industry to include issues such as:
- Berry sensory assessment and improved wine quality
- Business specifics such as marketing, market intelligence and financial benchmarking
- Development of leadership skills through a national wine industry leadership project
- Environmental management systems
- Biosecurity
- Climate Change
The program for each group is flexible and responsive to their requirements. For example, in reaction to the prolonged drought, some regions are focussing on irrigation in the 2006-07 season. Other regions have been affected by frost or fires recently, so they are concentrating on these issues. There have also been events in the Yarra Valley in response to the outbreak of phylloxera in 2006.
Grapecheque facilitators also assist groups to apply for funding, to enable them to undertake their own projects. Some examples of projects funded through the assistance of the Grapecheque program have been:
- Pinot Noir Quality Benchmarking (viticulture and wine) project in the Yarra Valley and Mornington Peninsula
- Environmental Management System Workshops in the Grampian/Pyrenees
- Wine Industry Leadership training needs analyses for Gippsland, North-East Victoria and Central Victoria
The facilitators also have an understanding of the latest viticultural research and current issues in the wine industry. Growers can find out what events are being conducted in their area by contacting the project manager, Jeff Milne (ph: 5051 4500, email: jeff.milne@dpi.vic.gov.au).
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