Understanding the Australian Wine Industry: A grower’s guide to the background and participants of the wine grape industry

The aim of this report is to establish a foundation that the reader can use as a conduit for further discovery about the Australian wine industry. It also has a focus on wine producers who are in diversified businesses with other enterprises such as cotton, horticulture and grains, how these growers are part of the wine industry and how they are positioned within it.

The wine industry in Australia is open for individual farmers seeking to pursue a livelihood by growing grapes perhaps as an additional enterprise to other commodities. This is a handbook-type report on the background, components, participants and machinations of one of Australia’s most important agricultural enterprises. Therefore, the following report is intended to provide a background of the Australian wine industry as a means of giving the reader a critical understanding of how it has operated and grown over the years. This is followed by an extensive explanation of the primary role played by the industry participants and how consumers influence the business perspective. It is then important to understand how the prices of grapes are set for the farmer along with the discovery of wine prices and the participant who bears the risk in this case.

As with any other business practice, selling wine requires effective marketing. The report discusses various techniques that are employed by bulk and niche producers to achieve success in the industry. Water use, varietal choice, geographic reputation and global competition are some of the examples. Finally, the report describes the improvements that can be made and recommendations for further study on the industry.