Ontario’s VQA Wine and Grape Industry’s newly released 2030 Vision anticipates substantial growth in this sector of the provincial economy, fueling increases in investment, market share, jobs and related wine tourism.
“The growing recognition of the quality of Ontario VQA wines, the excellence of our wine country tourism experiences and the opportunities for growth will combine to take our world-class industry to another level, with premium wine at the centre of a thriving economy and culture,” said Del Rollo, Chair of Wine Growers Ontario.
Among the projected growth targets within the next seven years, the “2030 Vision” predicts:
- Over 40,000 direct and indirect jobs in Ontario’s grape and wine production, wine tourism and hospitality sectors;
- Annual Ontario VQA wine sales of more than half a billion dollars (up from $385 million per year currently), with all-channel share of Ontario’s wine market growing by 20 per cent (from current 13 per cent);
- Three million annual visitors to Ontario’s wine regions (up from 2.6 million today); and
- A 75 per cent increase in capital investment by Ontario wine producers, with 4 million new vines planted over 20,000 acres.
A summary of Ontario’s VQA Wine & Grape Industry “2030 Vision” can be found here: https://winecountryontario.ca/wp-content/uploads/2023/02/2030-Vision_Executive-Summary-web.pdf
“Are these ambitious goals? They are, but they are absolutely achievable,” said Carolyn Hurst, Chair of Ontario Craft Wineries. “To get there, we need to come together – the grape and wine industry, our culinary and hospitality partners, and government.”
VQA wines are made with 100 per cent Ontario-grown grapes. Ontario has 18,000 acres under vine and has grown to 191 VQA wineries, concentrated in the Niagara Peninsula, Prince Edward County and Lake Erie North Shore. Advanced cool-climate viticultural research and technologies support emerging wine regions across the province of Ontario in Norfolk and Haldimand Counties, Central Ontario and Georgian Bay, Huron Shores and Eastern Ontario.
The Ontario wine industry contributes $5.5 billion annually to the province’s economy. In 2019, 22,000 full-time equivalent jobs were supported in the agriculture, food and beverage, hospitality, tourism, education and research sectors.