Wine Australia's Market Bulletin #295 notes that the share of the world’s vineyard area that is organic has grown from 1.39 per cent in 2005 to 7.85 per cent in 2021. Australia is ranked 11th in organic vineyard area with a 1.08 per cent share.
It is also noted that organic wine sales in the Australian domestic market have been steadily rising since 2012, albeit off a very low base, from 100,000 cases in 2012 to 1.5 million cases in 2022. This represents a compound annual growth rate of 31 per cent per annum over the decade.
Future growth opportunities
Recently, sustainability concerns have generally become stronger, which has translated into a growing consumer interest in alternative wines, including organic wine. Sustainability is important for at least two in every three consumers across the world’s biggest wine markets, such as the UK, US, Canada and Australia.
However, the increased cost of living represents a major threat for alternative wines, which are generally perceived as more expensive without necessarily being associated with higher quality and better taste, especially organic wines, according to research by Wine Intelligence and published in the SOLA 2023: Opportunities in Sustainable, Organic and Alternative Wine.
Despite the short-term challenges, the report suggests that there is a good growth opportunity for organic wine in the future.