N.S. wine industry looks to attract more people to the craft

Wanted: Vintners and winemakers in Nova Scotia.

With the local wine industry being a bright light in an otherwise gloomy economy, marketers are hoping to entice more people into the industry.

A new marketing plan, titled the Winery & Vineyard Attraction Project, provides resources for people interested in investment opportunities in the industry.

The comprehensive marketing package and website provide a wine barrel full of information on local success stories, industry trends, the best geographic areas for growth and even a step-by-step process for starting a winery or vineyard.

The Nova Scotia wine industry’s long-term growth strategy outlines an increase of vineyard acreage in the province from 160 to 400 hectares, an increase in the number of wineries from 10 to 20 and growth in industry revenue from $7.2 million to $23 million by 2020.

"The launch of the Winery & Vineyard Attraction Package helps bring these goals one step closer to reality," Colby Clarke, development officer with the Kings Community Economic Development Agency, said in a news release Thursday.

"With greater investments in Nova Scotia wineries and vineyards, the Kings CED Agency expects to see the creation of local jobs, increased export opportunities, increased tourism and preservation of agricultural land."

The Annapolis Valley is one of three regions the Winery Association of Nova Scotia lists as the best grape-growing areas in the province. The others are the Malagash peninsula and the LaHave River Valley.

Janice Ruddock said in an interview that local wine consumption is spurring the growth in the industry.

Retail sales of Nova Scotia wines are expected to grow to 23 million litres annually by 2020 from the current eight million litres.

The number of jobs the industry provides is expected to double over that time to 400 from 200, she said.

The Winery & Vineyard Attraction Project will see the development of a regional marketing initiative geared at furthering winery development in Kings County and four other areas in Nova Scotia.

Along with the Winery Association and the Grape Growers Association of Nova Scotia, six regional development authorities are involved: Kings Community Economic Development Agency, Hants Regional Development Authority, Annapolis Digby Economic Development Agency, Lunenburg Queens Regional Development Agency, Strait-Highlands Regional Development Agency and Cumberland Regional Economic Development Association.

Other funding partners include: Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, the provincial Agriculture Department and the provincial Economic and Rural Development Department.