Assessment of economic cost of endemic pests and diseases on the Australian grape and wine industry

The Grape and Wine Research and Development Corporation (GWRDC) engaged Scholefield Robinson Horticultural Services Pty Ltd (Scholefield Robinson) and EconSearch Pty Ltd (EconSearch) to estimate the economic impact of the endemic pests and diseases of viticulture in Australia in order to provide current data on their absolute and relative cost to the grape and wine industry. Exotic pests and diseases are not included in this project.

The project objectives formulated by Wine Australia were to:

• Collate a list of endemic pests and diseases considered to impact significantly on the productivity of winegrape producers in Australia;
• Collate all available contemporary estimates of the per annum economic impact of these pests and diseases on the profitability of Australian winegrape producers and identify pests including new and emerging pests and diseases for which no estimates of impact are available;
• Develop impact estimates using economic modelling for all significant pests and diseases (selected in consultation with relevant stakeholders) using consistent methodology; and
• Assess qualitatively how research investment on a specified list of pests and diseases might result in the largest return, for example through new prediction models, new control options, improved extension of current control recommendations, or a combination of these.

The project team was made up of Scholefield Robinson consultants with both grape and wine industry experience and pest and disease skills, EconSearch economists with grape and wine industry experience and a panel of industry personnel with “hands on” experience as grape growers, winery viticulturists and chemical company specialists.

This was a project assessing the economic impact over the national industry. The project team divided the industry into climatic zones based on Mean January Temperature (MJT) and Growing Season Rainfall (GSR) as described in Dry and Coombe (2008).