Campden BRI and AWRI team-up to support growth of UK wine sector

By James Bayley

Published: 03 April, 2023

Campden BRI and the Australian Wine Research Institute (AWRI) are teaming up to provide UK wine growers and importers with “cutting-edge insight and knowledge”.

The partnership between the UK food science company and a leading wine research organisation will, “provide a unique set of services to the UK wine industry, focusing on a full spectrum of scientific solutions to simple and complex wine problems”.

The move comes as British wine producers enjoy a boom in sales. Industry figures reveal grapevine plantings have more than doubled in the past eight years, with a 70% increase in the last five years alone. According to Wines of Great Britain, 8.7 million vines were planted in English and Welsh soil between 2017 and 2021, over 98% of which are in England.

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As reported by Harpers in August 2022, this surge has coincided with the UK’s ten warmest years on record, which have all occurred since 2002. Heatwaves like those experienced in 2018 have contributed to record UK average winegrape yields of 48 hectolitres per ha.

Industry experts estimate that Britain’s current five-year average for bottle production of 8.36 million bottles will soon increase to 20 million bottles a year.

Peter Headridge, CEO of Campden BRI, said: “With such rapid growth in wine production there is clearly a need for the very best scientific insight and advice to support this British success story.”

The objective of the partnership is to provide growers and importers with in-depth technical and analytical capabilities combined with sensory expertise. Based in the UK, close to the main wine growing regions, Campden BRI will assist members and clients to provide consistently good quality wines to its customers and support the UK wine industry in creating better products and brands.

Headridge added: “We believe the UK wine industry is underserved in this area and with our background of scientific research in the food and drink industry combined with the AWRI’s extensive expertise supporting the Australian wine sector, we can bring a new level of capability to serve our members and clients in the UK wine industry.

“This partnership brings together two long longstanding and eminent research organisations, enabling us to deliver outstanding services to those that need it, from grape to glass. We will also be supporting the AWRI in Australia with a range of analytical services for the food and drink industry, enabling its commercial arm, Affinity Labs, to broaden their offer.”

Mark Krstic, MD of the AWRI added: “Campden BRI and AWRI have many complementary strengths and experiences providing valuable services to the food and beverage sectors. Our two organisations share similar history, values and culture and can learn a lot from each other. Through this partnership we look forward to supporting Campden BRI in developing new services for UK grape and wine producers as well as expanding the capabilities we provide to Australian food and beverage producers through Affinity Labs.”

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