Australia establishes wine industry accelerator

Australia produced 1.29 billion liters of wine in 2018, with South Australia accounting for about half of the grapes used, according to Wine Australia, a government-funded research and marketing organization. Exports reached A$2.86 billion ($1.99 billion) in the 12 months ended June, largely driven by China and Hong Kong buyers, which contributed $1.2 billion.

Technology is expected to play a growing role in the traditional production, storing and bottling processes with the application of artificial intelligence and satellite technology. This trend is already apparent in the broader agriculture sector where progress is being made in areas ranging from task automation to crop genetics and protection to the efficient application of water and nutrients.

“The [Foment – SA’s Wine and Tourism Tech Revolution] program is designed to benefit South Australia’s wine and wine tourism industries by helping to embrace technology to enhance their global capability and competitiveness,” Steven Marshall, the state premier, said in a statement.

Matthew Moate, CEO of Wine Industry Suppliers Australia, a non-profit industry association, added: “It’s exciting as we’ve never done this before - bringing industry and entrepreneurs together to rapidly develop technology to meet their needs now and into the future.”

The program will run in partnership with the Flinders New Venture Institute – the incubator and acceleration arm of Adelaide-based Flinders University – and Hydra Consulting, which specializes in wine, food, tourism, environment and manufacturing projects.

Much of the momentum in Australia’s agtech sector has been driven by foreign capital channels such as US-based investors Finistere Ventures and AgFunder. However, earlier this year, Artesian Venture Partners and government-backed Grains Research & Development Corporation (GRDC) launched a A$50 million ($36 million) agriculture technology VC fund.

Private equity interest in Australia’s wine industry includes Accolade Wines, which CHAMP Private Equity sold to The Carlyle Group last year for A$1 billion. CHAMP secured a 5x multiple, having taken what was two divisions of Constellations Brands and fusing them into a single entity that leveraged Australia’s production strengths and access to increasingly sophisticated Asian markets.

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