The South African wine industry is committed to accelerating the good progress that has been made in addressing socio-economic challenges in rural communities, through a holistic approach, partnerships and collaboration with government.

 

This according to Rico Basson, managing director of VinPro – the representative organisation for close to 3 500 South African wine producers and cellars – at a discussion on Fetal Alcohol Syndrome (FAS) in Wellington yesterday.

 

Western Cape Premier Helen Zille called the meeting with representatives from Boland farming communities, local government, NGO’s and fruit and wine industries to openly discuss the prevalence and underlying causes of FAS, as well as projects aimed at addressing these issues. This followed an investigation by the Premier into (unsubstantiated) allegations of the use of the “dopstelsel” – a practice through which employees are paid either partly or in full in alcohol – in the region in a Cape Times report earlier this year.

 

“The ‘dopstelsel’ is illegal. To our knowledge it doesn’t exist, and if it does occur, it should be flagged via the right channels,” said Basson. He condemned opportunistic reporting in the strongest of terms, as it could do irreversible damage to Wine Brand SA, job creation and growth in the industry.

 

Basson said the wine industry agrees with government that alcohol abuse in South Africa is at unacceptably high levels, specifically binge drinking among the youth. Illicit trade remains a problem, with more than 150 000 unlicensed liquor outlets and one in five litres of alcohol sold being homemade mixtures.

 

“This is not only an agricultural challenge – it is a rural one. It is therefore crucial for all parties to work together to find targeted interventions for alcohol abuse,” he said.

 

According to Basson, alcohol abuse is not an isolated problem; a holistic approach is needed to address all underlying issues. He illustrated this by showcasing four projects in the wine industry.

 

The Industry Association for Responsible Alcohol Use (ARA), runs socio-economic upliftment programmes in the Perdeberg and Robertson districts. Initiated in 2012 to primarily focus on FAS, the project has expanded to aspects such as crèche training, health and safety, first aid and financial planning. It involves a project manager and two social workers, with outsourced training specialists. In the two districts combined, the project reaches 51 producers and 1 240 farm workers.

 

“The project’s success lies in buy-in from both producers and farm workers, regional flexibility and ownership, and most importantly, partnership with government, corporates and other service providers,” said Basson. The VinPro Foundation will partner with ARA from 1 July 2015 to roll out the project in two more regions; however the long-term goal is to have 18 social workers in nine regions within the next five years.

 

By obtaining accreditation from the Agricultural Ethical Trade Initiative (Wieta), wine producers ensure that they comply with local and global standards regarding ethical labour practice. Wieta currently has 1 276 members, with close to 17 000 farm workers under Wieta accreditation. The initiative is subsidised by industry and the Western Cape Department of Agriculture, and works closely with other ethical codes, such as Siza in the fruit industry.

 

VinPro has a strong focus on the training of vineyard workers, including a practical, accessible DVD training package covering all aspects of the wine growing season, as well as a related series of training courses on farms in the respective regions. “Funding from VinPro, private and corporate donors, as well as government departments, enables us to train close to 2 500 vineyard workers annually,” said Basson.

 

The Agri’s got Talent project is a joint venture between HORTGRO and the VinPro Foundation – representative organisations for the fruit and wine industries respectively – and includes a singing competition and life skills workshop. The winner of the Agri’s got Talent 2015 is announced on 31 July. “It is a wonderful platform to showcase the exceptional talent of our farm, packshed and cellar workers, and to empower them with knowledge and skills with which they can make a difference in their communities,” said Basson.

 

“It is now the time for all stakeholders to collaborate and ensure a better future for everyone in the wine industry value-chain – starting at our labour force, the cornerstone of our industry,” Basson emphasised.

 

Premier Zille thanked the fruit and wine industries for the initiatives with which they make a difference in the lives of their agricultural workers, and appealed to the workers to take pride in their communities, take responsibility for their future and stand up against social discrepancies.

 

ENQUIRIES: Jana Loots at tel 021 276 0429, jana@vinpro.co.za.