South African wine industry denies allegations of poor working conditions for workers

South African wine producers have united to defend their working practices, after the recent screening of a documentary in Scandinavia alleged that some workers are tantamount to “slaves”.

As a result, South African wines have been taken off the shelves in some Danish stores in protest.  

But Wines of South Africa (WoSA) has robustly defended its members, pointing out how much good work is being done in the country to help local communities.  

“The South African wine industry has come a long way in recent years to work together in order to improve the sustainability of one of its biggest assets - the workers,” said a WoSA statement.  

“Whilst we recognize that there is still a lot of work to be done, there are numerous programmes that include social upliftment, housing, land reform, education, skills and medical care for farm workers and their families.   

“Thanks to the hard work and dedication of bodies such as WIETA and Fairtrade, there are regular audits across the board that support and encourage positive change with regular audits, however these changes simply cannot happen overnight. It will take time, but the reality is that change is taking place, even despite many wine farmers running their businesses on very tight margins.  

What is needed now, continued WoSA, is more support of the industry, instead of boycotting it.   Each litre of wine sold at the right price point contributes to the successful growth of the industry, which directly translates into a flourishing industry where all its stakeholders, including its workers, are supported.   Increased sales of higher priced wines bottled in South Africa will generate better profit margins and have a direct influence on the well being of these farming communities and should be encouraged across the board.  

Bitter Grapes - Slavery in the Vineyards was produced by Danish filmmaker Tom Heinemann and was recently broadcast in Denmark and Sweden.  

In response wine.co.za is urging the trade to share good stories about South African wine under www.wineforgood.co.za and the hashtag #wineforgood.