Arbitrator setting grape price

A grape price dispute between Ontario wineries and growers is expected to be resolved this week.

An arbitrator appointed by the Ontario Farm Products Marketing Commission is expected to hand down a decision following a two-day hearing, which ended Tuesday.

Price negotiations between the Grape Growers of Ontario and the Wine Council of Ontario broke down in July.

The Grape Growers of Ontario, which represents more than 600 farmers, wants to see prices of wine grapes per tonne increase or remain the same, depending on variety.

The wine council, which represents 84 wineries, maintains there is an oversupply of grapes and prices should be dropped.

Grape growers contend there is just enough fruit to meet the demands of wine council members and the dozens of other wineries who are not part of the council.

Grape prices have been stable for the last three years.

A memorandum of understanding was signed in 2005 following a short crop caused by a harsh winter. The agreement gave grape growers steady price hikes of three per cent across all grape types in 2006 and two per cent in 2007.

Bill George, chairman of the Grape Growers of Ontario, called the arbitration "two long, hard days."

"We'll wait and see what the arbitrator's award is for the growers or the wine council," George said.

Wine council president Hillary Dawson said she did not wish to comment on how the proceedings went.

"It's an arbitration on price, so obviously we put in a set of prices and they have," Dawson said.

"We wouldn't have arbitrated the price if we didn't want the prices we had proposed."