The Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act (Community Participation) Bill could be a significant blow to New Zealand wine tourism, according to New Zealand Winegrowers.
The Justice Select Committee has reported on the Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act (Community Participation) Bill. The Bill proposes that licensing authorities could decline a license renewal where it is inconsistent with conditions on location or licence density in the relevant Local Alcohol Policy (LAP).
"We support the intention of the Bill, which is to increase community involvement and to reduce alcohol harm. However, the unintended consequence, which we highlighted to the Committee, is that this Bill could greatly impact wine tourism and trails. This Bill does not support wine tourism's contribution to our regions or New Zealand's world-renowned wine industry," said Philip Gregan, CEO of New Zealand Winegrowers.
"Cellar doors are traditionally located at the vineyard or winery, which makes sense as this is where the wine is produced. They can't relocate elsewhere, and for wine trails to operate successfully, cellar doors need to be near each other."
Gregan continued that this Bill could mean that some cellar doors will now be unable to sell wine and forced to close if a LAP imposes proximity provisions relating to sites such as schools or a church or restrictions on the density of licenses. These provisions would apply irrespective of whether the cellar door is well-run or valued by the community. This makes little or no sense given that cellar doors are one of the lowest risks licenses, where wine can be tasted, enjoyed, and purchased.
It is another blow to wine businesses when they struggle with surging production costs, labour shortages, and increasing excise tax.
Gregan added that it was disappointing that the Committee had not responded to our submission. There is little doubt this Bill will negatively affect our wine tourism regions, where wine tourists bring much-needed income to support local jobs and businesses."
