The Australian Bureau of Agricultural and Resource Economics (ABARE) has predicted that growth in Australia’s wine production will slow up in 2004/5. While ABARE forecast 13% growth in the country’s wine grape industry in 2004/5, it pointed out that this was slower growth than in the previous two vintages.
It attributed the slow-up to the decline in new plantings during the past four years.
ABARE also said it expected South Australia to remain the largest wine grape-producing state, accounting for nearly 50% of annual production.
Wine grape production is forecast to fall marginally to 1.56m tonnes in the 2002/3 harvest.
