1367.5 - Western Australian Statistical Indicators, Sep 2003  
ARCHIVED ISSUE Released at 11:30 AM (CANBERRA TIME) 08/10/2003   
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MEDIA RELEASE

October 08, 2003
Embargoed: 11:30 AM (AEST)
103/2003

Western Australia's winemaking industry one of the fastest growing in Australia

Western Australia's winemaking industry experienced significant increases in wine production and exports over the last five years and is one of the fastest growing winemaking industries in Australia, according to a special article released today by the Australian Bureau of Statistics.

The volume of total wine exported from Western Australia showed significant growth from 1.3 million litres in 1998-99 to 5 million litres in 2002-03, an increase of 298.2%.

The United Kingdom was the major country of destination for Western Australia's wine exports in 2002-03, accounting for 33.3% of the volume of total wine exported.

Beverage wine production in Western Australia more than tripled from 12.7 million litres in 1997-98 to 39.1 million litres in 2001-02, an increase of 207.6%.

The principal wine-producing area of South West Australia (including the regions of Blackwood Valley, Geographe, Great Southern and Margaret River) accounted for 80.9% (9,208 hectares) of the total area of vines and 86.2% (54,804 tonnes) of the total grape production for winemaking in season 2002.

Since 1996, the total number of Western Australians whose main job was in grape-growing or wine production increased by 124.5% to 3,228 people in 2001.

A total of 51,246 tonnes of winegrapes were crushed in Western Australia for vintage 2002, with red grape varieties accounting for 55.7% of the total crush. The total winegrape crush is expected to grow by almost 20% over the next five years to reach 61,336 tonnes in 2007.

Further details are in Western Australian Statistical Indicators, September Quarter 2003 (cat. no. 1367.5).

Media Note: Western Australian Statistical Indicators also provides information on: state accounts; consumer price index; construction; tourism; labour market; finance; trade; population; crime; and environment statistics. There is also a section on Social Trends, which focuses on the issues of education, training and work in Western Australia.