Carie Jones
The British Columbia Wine Institute (BCWI), the voice of the BC wine industry, is proud to announce that we have changed our name to Wine Growers British Columbia (WGBC) to better reflect the value-add agriculture, agri-food and growth opportunities of this dynamic industry.
Following the lead of our national organization, recently renamed Wine Growers Canada (WGC), renaming ourselves as WGBC reflects our deep connection to the land, from the vineyard to the glass, and repositions the BC wine industry and WGBC as the high value agri-food product and economic growth generator we are.
“As farmers, winemakers, retailers and tourism operators, the BC wine industry is the highest value-add agricultural product in British Columbia, contributing more than $2.8 billion in annual economic impact,” says Miles Prodan, President and CEO, Wine Growers British Columbia. “Repositioning the organization as Wine Growers British Columbia is a significant step in keeping our industry moving forward and better reflects the BC wine industry as part of a complex value-added agri-food chain and not simply a beverage alcohol product.”
Prior to the organization’s Annual General Meeting on September 1, 2020, the Board of Directors identified the importance of rebranding both the BC Wine Institute and the BC wine industry to Wine Growers British Columbia to better align with other provincial and national associations. Organization members voted unanimously to make the change.
“The objective for the new name was to focus the provincial association image from simply representing the beverage alcohol sector to being identified as a socially responsible, value-add agricultural contributor, representing and supporting grape growers and wineries as part of a family farm network,” says Erik Fisher, Board Chair, Wine Growers British Columbia.
Wine Growers British Columbia continues to represent wineries across all nine wine growing regions of BC. Our member wineries are responsible for almost 95 per cent of all grape wine produced in BC including 100 per cent certified BC wines. WGBC will continue to bring together our membership to market the wines and wine regions of BC; deliver quality trade, media and consumer tastings; and advocate to government on behalf of industry by working cooperatively with governments and stakeholders at all levels to find solutions that benefit BC wines and the communities in which we work and live.
“In British Columbia, more than 280 licensed grape wineries enhance the vibrancy and sustainability of our vineyards and agricultural communities which in turn supports more than 12,000 jobs and attracts more than a million tourists each year,” says Prodan. “We’re excited to continue representing and supporting grape growers and wineries as Wine Growers British Columbia, collaborating with government and industry to advance important initiatives that support key social and environmental areas along the entire farm-to-table value chain and foster the continued success of our industry.”
For more information about Wine Growers British Columbia visit WineBC.com.
BC Wine Industry Insight Conference on March 18, 2021
Under the organization's new name, Wine Growers British Columbia will host the annual BC Wine Industry Insight Conference on March 18, 2021 in collaboration with the BC Wine Grape Council, BC Grapegrowers' Association and the BC Wine Authority to provide a virtual forum covering topics, issues, policies and opportunities that impact the BC wine industry.
The conference theme Navigating the Future – Together encompasses an exciting line-up of topics focused on best practices for operating in our new reality and will include key insights from research conducted through Wine Intelligence, the top global experts on wine consumer research and insights recently acquired by IWSR Drinks Market Analysis, the leading authority on the worldwide beverage alcohol industry.