How Wine Australia invests in research and innovation

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How Wine Australia invests in research and innovation

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Wine Australia invests in strategic bilateral agreements with a number of key research organisations including The Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI), CSIRO, SARDI, The University of Adelaide and Charles Sturt University. We also periodically request applications for research, development and extension projects on specific topics.

How Wine Australia invests to create impact

Wine Australia has three key functions that work to empower the success of the Australian wine sector:

Research, Innovation and Adoption to enhance global competitiveness, helping grape and wine businesses meet the challenges of tomorrow, today.
Market Development to increase the demand and premium paid for Australian wine across all markets by expanding market and promotion opportunities for Australian wine.
Regulatory Services to safeguard product integrity and uphold the sector’s reputation by maintaining market confidence in the high standards expected of Australian wine.

Wine Australia is funded by a combination of levies from grapegrowers, winemakers and exporters, user-pays charges for some market development activities, and the Australian Government who matches the sector levies for Research and Innovation.

Our challenge is to invest levies in areas across the diverse needs of all levy payers.

Responsible expenditure

As one of the 15 rural research and development corporations (RDCs), Wine Australia operates under specific requirements and expectations to fund research, innovation, extension and adoption, to deliver benefit to levy payers and the sector.

Central to our role is the responsible expenditure of levy payer funds. But for Wine Australia, this goes beyond a statutory requirement. Entrusted with levy payer funds, we consider it an imperative that every dollar is invested wisely – with the right partners, and in the right projects and initiatives to deliver maximum impact against those areas levy payers have identified as their key priorities.

In turn, we hold all research and service providers across all our functions to the same high standard.

Consulting with the sector

Our investments are guided by the priorities of grapegrowers and winemakers to address the sector’s most pressing issues and empower business success.

Those that fund Wine Australia’s investments are central to our consultation and operations – we are accountable to them. We consult at regional, state, national and international levels to identify the issues and opportunities for the sector.

For example, consultation for Wine Australia’s 2020–2025 Strategic Plan identified 16 key priorities for research and innovation reflecting the diverse needs of all levy payers. These have been further strengthened under the consultation for the One Grape & Wine Sector Plan and include plant breeding, climate change, waste, biosecurity, carbon emissions, regional program, people development and careers.

A range of initiatives are designed and delivered for different levy payers, and the breadth of priorities reflect those areas identified by grapegrowers and winemakers in different regions, with different business models and needs.

Wine Australia must ensure we are working with partners who have the necessary expertise, capability and are accountable. Not just in delivering research outcomes, but importantly, in developing practical adoption and commercialisation solutions that maximise the impact levy dollars create within the sector for grapegrowers and winemakers.

Stop/go checks to safeguard investment

All investments at Wine Australia follow a process of regular stop/go checks along the lifespan of the investment – from consultation and design to completion – to make sure that it can and is delivering the best value to the sector. At each decision point Wine Australia ensures our focus and accountability remain firmly with the grapegrowers, winemakers, exporters and the Australian Government that fund us. We are committed to supporting industry success by promoting profitability, resilience, and sustainability.

At the initiation stage, we ask:

Does the issue identified align to Wine Australia’s role? Are we permitted to invest in a solution?
Does it align with the priorities of our levy payers and the Australian Government?
Does it align with Wine Australia’s Strategic Plan?
Is there a market failure?

If yes, we’ve passed the first “stop/go” point in our decision-making process.

We then work with the sector and with potential project partners and collaborators to refine what needs to be done. What is the intent of proceeding with this issue or opportunity? To identify this, some of the questions we ask are:

What are the outcomes?
What value will be created and for whom?
Is there a path to the activity or research adoption?
Does this contribute to a strategically balanced portfolio and will it be useable by the sector any time soon?

We consult with Australian Grape & Wine’s Research Advisory Committee and the Joint Marketing Group, using these and other questions to advise us on the highest priorities for investment.

This is our second stop/go point. If a concept passes this it may go out as a request for proposal, or we may have an open call for submissions or expressions of interest. If it doesn’t get past this stage, it may be reworked to finesse the concepts.

Following the second stop/go, we’re at the point of committing levy funding. Some of the questions we ask of proposals, submissions, expressions of interest are:

Do the providers have expertise, capability and efficiency to deliver?
Can external funds be leveraged for greater impact?
Is there a commercialisation or research adoption path?
Is there a return on investment of the levy funds?
Do we have the right allocation of resources to priority areas?

We also consult Australian Grape & Wine’s Research Advisory Committee and the Joint Marketing Group to ensure we have the right resource allocations against priorities and to review proposals behalf of the sector. Their advice is considered by the Wine Australia Board, who make the final decisions on investment.

This is our third stop/go point. A stop here may again mean the concept requires further refinement.

Now we are into active project management, where throughout the project we regularly check in and ask:

Are milestones being met?
Is the solution still a priority for levy payers?
Are the right extension tools and services in place for practice change?
Does the workforce have capability to adopt?

This step is undertaken with collaborators and partners involved in the project.

This is our fourth stop/go point. If investment doesn’t pass this step, it doesn’t proceed because it is unlikely to create impact. However, the concept can still be reworked to realign with the sector’s needs.

Reduced levy income and increased performance expectation

Currently, levy income for research and innovation investments has been reduced due to below average vintages in recent years. We need to do better, to do more with less, and to deliver value that is accountable to the sector.

We are seeking out additional funding opportunities to leverage the levies from the sector. However, Wine Australia’s challenge is to ensure we are able to invest appropriately across all the sector’s priorities. Our focus is on the need for change to drive impact and value.

The operating landscape has changed dramatically and is almost unrecognisable from the 1980s when the research and development corporations were first established. Industry organisations have evolved and adapted to suit the changing sector needs, and we have been presented with commercial, technical, and regulatory challenges and opportunities that could not have been foreseen decades ago.

Expectations have also changed. Increasing the value for money and impact of our investments is a non-negotiable requirement of Wine Australia by both levy payers and the Australian Government. And in turn, all research and service providers must meet these expectations to deliver increased value for money, impact and accountability – which is why the regular stop/go points are critical.

The sector’s strength relies on us all working together towards a common goal of sector profitability and resilience.

Download our sector briefing paper to read our response to recent concerns raised about research and innovation investments, particularly those at the Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI).

Dr Paul Smith General Manager, Research & Innovation Adelaide, South Australia Read bio
Alex Sas Senior R&I Program Manager Adelaide, South Australia Read bio
Dr Sharon Harvey Senior R&I Program Manager Adelaide, South Australia Read bio
Robyn Dixon Research & Innovation Program Manager Adelaide, South Australia Read bio
Josh Hixson Senior Research Impact Manager Adelaide, South Australia Read bio
Jo Hargreaves Senior Research & Innovation Program Manager Adelaide, South Australia Read bio
Julian Marchant ESG Program Manager Adelaide, South Australia Read bio
Libby Tedstone National Extension & Adoption Manager Adelaide, South Australia Read bio
Chris Beard Program Manager - Regional Innovation Read bio