Going organic - with care

Wine producers that switch to organic production risk suffering a severe financial knock. Glenneis Kriel reports on how Western Cape-based producer Bosman Adama has managed this risk successfully.

- By Glenneis Kriel

Sustainability, it is clear, has always been a priority for the Bosmans: no fewer than eight generations of this family have farmed on Lelienfontein near Wellington in the Western Cape.

Over the past five years, in their latest endeavour to leave the land better for future generations, the Bosmans have switched to organic production in a number of their vineyards. In all, 20ha are under organic certification with Ecocert, and 30ha are being converted to organic farming.

According to Jannie Bosman, current chairperson of Bosman Adama, the international market for organic wines has grown steadily over the past few years, driven by consumers’ demand for wines that are free of additives and produced in an environmentally responsible way.

Consumers are also willing to pay a premium for these wines, while competition in this sales category is less fierce than for conventional wines.

Despite all these advantages, organic wine production is not yet as lucrative as conventional production, a fact that Jannie attributes to lower yields and higher labour costs, particularly because of the absence of chemical herbicides.